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A former presidential campaign aide to Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has resigned his seat in the Iowa State Senate after an investigation found it likely that he broke Senate ethics rules. 


Republican Kent Sorensen was the Iowa campaign chairman for Bachmann's presidential run in 2011. He's accused of accepting payment for that work in violation of Senate rules.   


An independent investigation released yesterday says it was "clear" that Sorenson negotiated improper payments, which eventually amounted to $7,500 a month.  


Sorenson resigned shortly after the report was released. He told the Associated Press his resignation was not an admission of wrongdoing.  


For more on the fallout from this investigation, MPR's Cathy Wurzer spoke with the chairman of Iowa's Senate Ethics Committee, Sen. Wally Horn, who's a Democrat from Cedar Rapids.

When asked about Rep. Bachmann's involvement, state Sen. Horn replied, "She had to play a part in it. I don't know if staff hid it from her and she didn't know. But let's just say the organization knew."

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A former presidential campaign aide to Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., has resigned his seat in the Iowa State Senate after an investigation found it likely that he broke Senate ethics rules. MPR's Cathy Wurzer spoke with the chairman of Iowa's Senate Ethics Committee, Sen. Wally Horn about the matter.

A former campaign aide to Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has resigned his seat in the Iowa State Senate after an investigation found it likely that he broke Senate ethics rules. Republican Kent Sorensen was the Iowa campaign chairman for Bachmann's presidential run in 2011. He's accused of accepting payment for that work in violation of Senate rules.   An independent investigation released yesterday says it was "clear" that Sorenson negotiated improper payments, which eventually amounted to $7,500 a month.  Sorenson resigned shortly after the report was released. He told the Associated Press his resignation was not an admission of wrongdoing.  For more on the fallout from this investigation, MPR's Cathy Wurzer spoke with the chairman of Iowa's Senate Ethics Committee, Sen. Wally Horn, who's a Democrat from Cedar Rapids.

What's behind the Bachmann presidential campaign aide's surprise resignation?

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