Ryan to donate contribution linked to ex-RNC finance chairman

Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) will donate money he received from an organization with ties to casino mogul Steve Wynn, who announced he was leaving his position as finance chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC) after multiple women accused him of sexual misconduct.

Ryan received a $1,000 donation in 2016 from Wynn Resorts Limited Initiative for Public Policy. Ryan will donate that money to a local charity, a spokesman confirmed to The Hill on Sunday.

Ryan’s planned donation was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.

Wynn stepped down as finance chairman of the RNC following reports he sexually harassed employees at his properties.

{mosads}The Wall Street Journal reported late last week that Wynn reached a $7.5 million settlement with a manicurist who worked at his Wynn Las Vegas property who said he forced her to have sex with him. Multiple other women reported instances of sexual misconduct by Wynn. 

Wynn denied the allegations in a statement to the newspaper. 

Wynn was appointed as the RNC’s finance chairman last year after President Trump’s inauguration, and has donated to numerous political organizations and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, including Sens. Dean Heller (R-Nev.), John McCain (R-Ariz.), Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) and former Sen. Harry Reid. (D-Nev.).

Wynn has also made small donations to former Vice President Joe Biden and former Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton. 

Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) said earlier on Sunday that Republicans who have accepted donations from Wynn should return them.