O’Donnell accuses Biden of helping to orchestrate money probe

Former Delaware Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell is accusing her political opponents, including Vice President Joe Biden, of arranging a federal investigation into whether she illegally used campaign funds for personal expenses.

The onetime tea party hopeful told ABC's Good Morning America that she "had always done everything to comply" with federal election laws. "There's been no impermissible use of campaign funds whatsoever," she insisted. "You have to look at this whole thug politic tactic for what it is… I'm confident we will be cleared of any charges."

O'Donnell, who says she's heard nothing from federal authorities about an investigation, has pointed the finger at Biden, among others, for launching the "phony" probe. "Given that the king of the Delaware political establishment just so happens to be the vice president of the most liberal presidential administration in U.S. history, it is no surprise that misuse and abuse of the FBI would not be off the table," she said in a statement issued Wednesday.

Asked by ABC's Robin Roberts if she really believes Biden is behind the investigation, O'Donnell didn't back down. The investigation, she noted, appears to have arisen out of a complaint filed by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics, a DC-based good government group led by a former Biden staffer.

"You don't need a tipster to show that this was politically motivated. We were informed that the Delaware political establishment was going to use every resource available to them, including launching phony investigations ... tying me up with lawsuits to make sure I can't move forward politically," she said. "I even expect more things to come, that's their tactic."

You can watch O'Donnell's interview here, courtesy of ABC:

This isn't the first time O'Donnell has suggested that Biden was out to get her. In August, she told National Public Radio that she believes she and members of her family were audited by the Internal Revenue Service because she challenged Biden for Senate in 2008. "I ran against Joe Biden, and I was audited," she told NPR. "My mother's business was audited, and many other members of my family were audited." She called the effort "thug politics" and "intimidation tactics."

In the latest instance, O'Donnell says neither she nor her lawyer had been informed that she is the target of a federal investigation into her campaign finances. She has previously admitted to using campaign funds to cover her rent, but continues to defend the use, noting that her home was also doubling as her campaign headquarters at the time.

But the CREW complaint includes an affidavit signed by a former O'Donnell staffer claiming the candidate's spending went well beyond what was legally allowed. A second former staffer has also gone public with similar complaints.

On Thursday, O'Donnell told ABC that the allegations were being made by "fired, disgruntled workers" and that other staffers who had served longer in her campaign have previously defended her.

(Photo of O'Donnell by Rob Carr/AP)