Indiana lawmaker defends taking family on California trip

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — U.S. Rep. Marlin Stutzman on Thursday defended his decision to have his Senate campaign pay more than $2,000 for a six-day trip to California last summer that his wife described on social media as a family vacation.

[...] an itinerary of the trip released by his campaign as well as a radio interview Stutzman gave Thursday left a number of questions unanswered — and raised new ones — about the West Coast visit and wider spending on travel by the tea party favorite.

The California visit represents just a small part of over $300,000 in flights, vehicle charges, meals and hotel stays Stutzman's campaign fund has spent since the tea party-backed Republican went to Washington in 2010 on a pledge to oppose special interests, an AP review found.

Stutzman is locked in a primary battle with Young for the Republican nomination to fill an open U.S. Senate seat that could be important in the November elections, when Democrats hope to win a Senate majority.

Michael Toner, who was chairman of the FEC under President George W. Bush, told the AP that family vacations can't be charged to a campaign account and that the candidate must pay for personal expenses, even if the trip includes political activities.

Among other AP questions Stutzman's campaign has declined to answer is whether the mileage he charged his congressional and campaign accounts was largely for in-state trips or travel to and from Washington and the details of his purchasing a car with campaign funds.