Ted Cruz 'volunteers time' for podcast, but iHeartMedia gave $787K to PAC, records show

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, remains under scrutiny over a financial relationship between his podcast and iHeartMedia and whether the company is aiding his reelection campaign, as alleged in complaints filed with the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Ethics, including a new one submitted as recently as last week.

Arguing that the financial arrangement violates federal law, at least three ethics complaints have been lodged against Cruz over a syndication deal with the San Antonio-based audio media company that publishes the senator's podcast, "Verdict with Ted Cruz." Though a Cruz spokesperson has said the senator does not gain financially on the deal, the company has contributed $787,000 to a political action committee backing Cruz's Senate reelection campaign against Democratic challenger U.S. Rep. Collin Allred of Dallas.

Michael Tijerina, a Collin County Democratic Party precinct chair, in a July 14 complaint filed with the Ethics Committee, accuses Cruz of violating federal law and Senate ethics rules by flouting earned income limits, a ban on receiving payments for appearances or speaking engagements, and financial disclosure requirements.

"Senator Cruz claims to volunteer his time to appear on the podcast," that complaint Tijerina says. "However, Senator Cruz seems to be receiving a 'thing of value' for his appearances — namely hundreds of thousands of funds to a super PAC supporting his re-election campaign."

In a previous complaint filed by the Campaign Legal Center and End Citizens United, the groups similarly pointed to the syndication deal as a violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act as iHeartMedia had made roughly $630,000 in payments to the super PAC, which then reported the payments as "digital revenue" or "digital income," as opposed to campaign contributions.

Since the groups made a formal investigation request of the Federal Election Commission in April — which came after a previous investigation petition based on the same accusations was sent to the Senate Ethics Committee in late 2022 — Cruz's Truth and Courage PAC received an additional $156,000 payment from iHeartMedia in May. That brings the total disbursal to $787,000 since the syndication deal began.

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The prior complaint filed with the Ethics Committee pointed to specific legislation related to the Federal Communications Commission — for which iHeartMedia lobbied — that was introduced in the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, a panel on which Cruz serves.

The media conglomerate has said previously that the money in question is "associated with ad sales," directing further questions to the Truth and Courage PAC. At the time of the original complaint, a spokesperson for Cruz said the senator does not receive a financial benefit from his podcast being housed on the platform, likening the partnership to that of appearing on a cable or network news show.

Cruz's office did not respond to an American-Statesman request for comment on the relationship with iHeartMedia or payments to the Truth and Courage PAC.

In making a renewed request to the Ethics Committee, Tijerina is asking for both an investigation into the financial situation brought about by the podcast and "appropriate remedial action" against Cruz for possible improper conduct.

“Ted Cruz has a long record of putting himself ahead of Texans and his podcast is just the latest example," Tijerina said in a statement. "If Cruz is breaking Senate rules or federal election law by funneling money to his super PAC, we deserve to know.”

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The Senate Select Committee on Ethics has not issued disciplinary sanctions since 2007. A spokesperson for the committee declined to comment on Cruz's case, saying the committee does not publicly address active complaints.

Outside of the funding derived from iHeartMedia, Cruz raked in more than $12.6 million between April and June, topping Allred's contribution total of $10.5 million in a competitive race for the Senate seat Cruz has held since 2012.

A poll by the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs and Texas Southern University released recently showed Cruz holding a slim lead of 3 percentage points over Allred.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Committee to probe Ted Cruz's iHeartMedia deal after $787K donation