Luna Turns Up Heat on Gallego

Adriana Stone 0 1 min read

Luna Turns Up Heat on Gallego

Sen. Ruben Gallego is suddenly under a brighter spotlight, and not the kind any politician wants. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna of Florida said Thursday that she has referred allegations involving the Arizona Democrat to Senate Majority Leader John Thune. The claims, which Luna discussed on CBS News, were described as serious and still unverified.

Gallego has already pushed back hard. He denied the accusations and brushed them off as “conspiracy theories.” That denial came as the story started drawing more attention, especially because Luna tied Gallego to a separate scandal involving former Rep. Eric Swalwell.

According to the CBS report, Luna said the allegations against Gallego include issues “sexual in nature” and possible campaign finance violations. CBS News also noted that it has not verified the claims. That matters. A lot. Allegations are not proof, and the public should keep that line clear.

Still, Luna’s comments were enough to set off a new round of questions. She told CBS News that Senate Majority Leader John Thune’s office had confirmed the matter was under investigation. She also said there is “a woman that allegedly is coming forward with attorneys [and] wants to go on-record about an incident that occurred between the two of them at the same time, and the event was sexual in nature, allegedly.”

The timing is rough for Gallego. He has spent days trying to put distance between himself and Swalwell, who exited Congress this week after his own misconduct controversy exploded. Now Gallego is dealing with his own headlines, and that is the last thing he needed.

Whether this story grows or fades will depend on what evidence surfaces next. For now, the picture is simple: Luna made the accusation, Gallego denied it, and Senate leaders are being pulled into the middle of it. That is a messy place for any lawmaker to be.

NEW: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) is accusing Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) of misconduct, telling CBS News’ Major Garrett her office has provided Senate Majority Leader Thune’s staff with allegations related to Gallego that are “sexual in nature.” CBS News has reached out to… pic.twitter.com/z4L54nix3v

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