U.S. Rep. John Kline, a Republican whose district includes Burnsville, is receiving criticism for hosting a fundraiser for a scandal-plagued Tennessee congressman accused of impregnating his medical patient and pressuring her to have an abortion.

Kline lent his name to a March 19 fundraiser for Tennessee Republican Scott DesJarlais, a doctor and anti-abortion advocate, who reportedly dated multiple patients, arranging for an abortion with one, and supported his wife's decision to have two abortions before their marriage, according to transcripts from their divorce proceedings.

"Congressman Kline's support for disgraced, Tea Party hypocrite Scott DesJarlais is just one more example of how out of touch Kline is with Minnesota," said Andy Stone, the spokesman for a Super Pac targeting Kline. "Whether it's embracing DesJarlais' nausea-inducing behavior, supporting an end to Medicare as we know it or protecting tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas, John Kline has shown again and again how he fails to represent Minnesota."

A Kline spokesman told the Star Tribune that his role in DesJarlais's fundraiser stemmed from their work together on the Education and Workforce Committee and that Kline never planned on attending the event.