BunnyPAC Hopes to Thump Duncan Hunter on Rabbitgate
Hunter’s people say it’s pure politics
A political action committee is relying on a rabbit to help California Rep. Duncan Hunter hop out of Congress.
BunnyPAC was started by Shawn VanDiver, a Navy veteran who runs his own consulting firm in San Diego. It is rooted in allegations that Hunter used campaign money for personal expenses, including paying for airline fare for the family’s pet rabbit.
“In an era of [President Donald] Trump we have seen that ridiculousness works,” VanDiver said. “I’ll fight ridiculousness with ridiculousness.”
VanDiver has dubbed the rabbit “Duncan Thumper” and plans to use him to explain Hunter’s alleged ethics violations.
“The purpose for Duncan Thumper is to explain from his perspective what each of these expenditures mean,” VanDiver said.
Hunter is currently facing a federal investigation and has reimbursed his campaign for the questioned expenses.
A spokesman in his office dismissed VanDiver’s stunt, saying that it wasn’t even Hunter’s rabbit — it was his children’s.
“If Hunter had his way, it would have been used for soup long before that,” the spokesman said in a statement.
Hunter is facing a challenge from Democrat Josh Butner, a retired Navy SEAL, in 2018, but his district is a reliably Republican one.
