Ward 2 Councilmember Brooke Pinto issued an apology after her campaign last week released a trove of documents containing opposition research, which included personal information on her opponent for D.C.’s Congressional seat and his family.
Pinto’s campaign released a now-archived 67-page dossier, first reported by journalist Tom Sherwood, which included the home address of her opponent, At-Large Councilmember Robert White, and personal information about his family members. Pinto, who represents Ward 2 — which includes Foggy Bottom — on the D.C. Council, is competing against White in the Democratic primary to succeed retiring D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, who has held city’s non-voting position in Congress since 1991.
The archived dossier included White’s address, a photo of his family’s home, information about a social media account belonging to his father, details of the arrest of White’s brother for driving under the influence and other personal information about White and his family.
White called on Pinto to withdraw from the campaign on April 13 and said the release of the dossier was a violation of “basic decency.”
“This is not just a lapse in judgement; it is a blatant violation of basic decency,” White said in a post on X. “It is dangerous, invasive and completely unacceptable. Whether driven by political desperation or a profound lack of judgement, this conduct is disturbing and completely disqualifying.”
Later the same day, Pinto apologized and said the information about White was publicly available but that it should have been redacted.
“Campaigns should be run between candidates who put themselves out there to share their ideas, vision and past record,” Pinto said in a post on X. “While all information is available through any public search, we have removed all mention of my opponent’s family and home from our site — this should have been initially redacted and I sincerely apologize to the White family.”
Pinto and White did not respond to requests for comment.
The documents are still available on Pinto’s campaign website but in a shorter 56-page version that does not include references to White’s family members and has underwent a flurry of other modifications but still includes a “liabilities” section detailing information about his wife’s credit card and student loan debt.
Among the differences between the two versions is the removal of entire sections about White’s family members, his residence and a “debts and insolvency sections” section. The campaign also removed a “methodology” section, which detailed how the dossier investigated White’s background using what it said were publicly available records.
A removed section of the report said the campaign found no criminal history from White other than two speeding tickets. The report also identified two separate instances in which White sued a limo company and a contractor, both for breach of contract.
The dossier also highlights financial contributions White has received from the real estate industry and from political donors who also made contributions to President Donald Trump’s campaigns.
Pinto in her campaign has embraced a message about addressing crime in the District, highlighting her accomplishments chairing the council’s Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, while criticizing White for being “soft on crime” in the dossier. White has argued for D.C. Statehood in his campaign — which Pinto also supports — and has committed working to reduce federal interference into the city while criticizing Pinto for gaining support from Republican donors.
The Democratic primary is scheduled for June 16.
