Rep. Joe Walsh has gotten lots of media attention for a child support dispute with his ex-wife. The couple had been married for 15 years when she filed for divorce in 2002. Ever since, she has reportedly gone to court, claiming he neglected to pay his child support obligations for their three children.
According to the Chicago Sun-Times, the congressman owes over $100,000 to his ex-wife. But he’s firing back, asking the woman to be sanctioned for allegedly failing to provide documentation of her employment and salary records. He and his representatives also say that she failed to provide tax returns and bank statements, among other paperwork.
In turn, the woman’s attorney argues that the move should be considered harassment, since she is under no obligation to pay him anything. The real question, the woman’s representatives say, is why Walsh has not and will not pay the $117,000 they say he owes.
The congressman, a Tea Party favorite who has accused the White House of causing the country to go in a bankrupt direction, has not commented on the case recently.
The Sun-Times reports that both sides met in recent weeks to negotiate a settlement, but an agreement could not be reached. They will apparently meet again when the politician next returns from Washington.
The man’s ex-wife says he had paid nothing for two or three years when she noticed in 2010 that he had loaned his campaign $35,000. That’s when she asked a court to order him to pay the back child support.
Source: Chicago Sun-Times, “Rep. Joe Walsh wants ex-wife sanctioned in child support case,” Abdon M. Pallasch, Sept. 7, 2011