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Graves’ Campaign Pulls Down Video of Swearing-In

Newly minted Rep. Tom Graves appears to have run afoul of House rules by posting footage of his swearing-in ceremony on a campaign-related website.

Campaign aides to the Georgia Republican, who was sworn in Monday after winning the special election to replace ex-Rep. Nathan Deal (R), published a 9 minute, 49 second video of the House ceremony on the campaign’s YouTube account and Facebook page.

Although House lawmakers are permitted to post video of floor proceedings on their official websites or related social media accounts, the chamber’s rules prohibit such footage from being used on campaign sites.

“Broadcast coverage and recordings of House floor proceedings may not be used for any political purpose,” the House Ethics Manual states. The manual is published by the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, commonly known as the ethics panel, as an interpretation of the chamber’s rules.

“It was inadvertently put up there by a campaign person who wasn’t aware of House rules,” Graves campaign manager Tim Baker said. “We’re taking care of it. We’re fixing it.”

The video was removed Tuesday afternoon.

According to Baker, a Graves supporter had recorded the swearing-in ceremony on C-SPAN and then provided it to the campaign.

The error was highlighted by former state Sen. Lee Hawkins, who lost to Graves in the June 8 GOP runoff to fill the remainder of Deal’s term. Hawkins and Graves are among the half-dozen Republicans running in the July 20 primary for the right to be the party’s November nominee in the safe Republican district.

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