NRCC Chair Tom Cole released a statement and committee briefing today regarding recent reports of the NRCC's accounting irregularities. Reid Wilson reported Feb. 1 that an internal investigation by the committee was focused on former NRCC treasurer Chris Ward. The NRCC's report released today confirmed that.

According to the report, Ward, who first came to the committee in 1995 and became treasurer in 2003, had turned in "bogus audit reports" to the NRCC's bank, as well as to committee leadership, for the years 2002 through 2005.

The report also states that Ward "made several hundred thousand dollars in unauthorized transfers of NRCC funds to outside committees whose bank accounts he had access to, including joint fundraising committees in which the NRCC participated. He also appears to have made subsequent transfers of several hundred thousand dollars in funds from those outside committees to what appear to be his personal and business bank accounts."

The report also found that the NRCC gave faulty reports to the FEC that overrepresented the committee's actual cash-on-hand at the end of 2006 and 2007. The NRCC actually had $740,000 less than it reported to the FEC at the end of 2007 and $990,000 less than its 2006 end-of-year report showed.

Ward stepped down as treasurer in July 2007, but continued to work with the committee as a consultant. The NRCC "terminated Ward's consulting duties" January 28.

Cole's statement:

"This afternoon I took the opportunity to brief the Republican congressional leadership and the NRCC's Executive Committee on our ongoing investigation of apparent accounting irregularities and to detail for them the informational notice submitted to the FEC earlier today, which reflects an adjusted cash on hand as of January 31, 2008.

Paramount to my chairmanship is the integrity and success of the NRCC. However, the evidence we have today indicates we have been deceived and betrayed for a number of years by a highly respected and trusted individual. From the moment we learned that bogus financial statements had been submitted to the bank on our behalf, we took decisive and speedy action by contacting the FBI, which opened a criminal investigation.

It is my goal to be open and candid with the facts of this matter and to assure our members, our supporters and our staff at the NRCC that every effort is being made to prevent such a fraudulent act from happening again."