Kid Rock has blasted a complaint filed by a watchdog group over his proposed U.S. Senate run.
The musician, real name Robert Ritchie, stunned fans in July when he announced that he is considering challenging Democrat Debbie Stabenow’s seat in his native Michigan in the 2018 election.
Rock’s political chat has since caught the attention of left-leaning nonpartisan group Common Cause, with organisers filing a complaint with the Federal Election Commission and Department of Justice on Friday (September 1), accusing him of violating federal election laws by acting as a Senate candidate by tweeting about it and launching a website on the topic, without registering his candidacy.
The complaint quickly drew Rock’s attention and he responded with a note posted on his website.
“I am starting to see reports from the misinformed press and the fake news on how I am in violation of breaking campaign law,” he stated on Friday. “#1 I have still not officially announced my candidacy. #2 See #1 and go fuck yourselves. Everyone else, Have a great Labor Day.”
In Common Cause’s complaint, it was also claimed that Rock had failed to comply with contribution restrictions and disclose contributions to his campaign. His label, Warner Bros. Records, was also named, with the company accused of violating federal law and commission regulations by facilitating and acting as a conduit for contributions.
“Regardless of whether Kid Rock says he’s only exploring the candidacy, he’s selling ‘Kid Rock for Senate’ merchandise and is a candidate under the law. This is campaign finance law 101,” said Paul S. Ryan, Common Cause’s vice president for policy and litigation. “Given the activities we’ve documented in the complaint, he can’t reasonably claim to be merely testing the waters of candidacy and thus exempt from candidate filing requirements. He is a candidate and is obligated to abide by all the rules and make the same disclosures required of everyone else running for federal office.”
Rock, 46, has long been affiliated with the U.S. Republican Party, and he previously allowed Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign to use his song Born Free at promotional events.
