A Washington Post analysis of Alabama Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville’s financial statements shows he’s falling short on a 2020 campaign promise to donate his salary to Alabama veterans groups, having cut off his donations to his own charity because of a very MAGAt reason:  they were under audit.

In a March 2020 campaign video, Tuberville vowed, “I’m going to donate every dime I make when I’m in Washington, D.C., to the veterans of the state of Alabama.”  His financial statement show he’s not donated that amount–a $174,000 annual salary–to any veterans group.  As the Post points out, Tuberville previously made such donations through his personal charity, the Tommy Tuberville Foundation, but foundation records show it took in only $74,000 in 2021 (Tuberville’s first year in office) and it took in less than $50,000 in 2022, much less than Tuberville’s salary.

Tuberville’s Senate spokesperson has an explanation for that:  the foundation was under audit, he claims, so it suspended operations and Tuberville suspended donations… for two years. “You are correct that Coach”–his staff calls him “Coach” instead of “Senator” because being a member of the federal government’s senior chamber isn’t enough of an honor for the conservative–“uses the Foundation as the primary vehicle for donating to veterans’ organizations, but it is by no means the only one,” Tuberville communications director Steven Stafford said in an email. “You may have learned by now that there were serious problems with the Foundation for a number of years, and that the Foundation came under audit. My understanding is that during the audit, the Foundation paused most of its activities.”