The House Administration Committee has requested Regina Wallace-Jones, CEO of the fundraising group ActBlue, to appear as part of a broader congressional probe.
In a letter addressed to Jones, it stated: “As you know, the Committee, along with the Judiciary, Oversight, and Government Reform Committees, has been looking into ActBlue’s donor verification measures and fraud prevention since October 2023.”
It continued: “The Committee is exploring potential legal reforms to tackle fraudulent and illegal political donations via online platforms like ActBlue. Given your position, we believe you may possess useful information for this investigation.”
Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), who heads the House Judiciary Committee, noted that Republicans are also examining the matter. This week, it was reported that the legal executive at ActBlue in charge of fraud oversight plans to resign following the 2024 presidential election.
Jordan said, “The general counsel was terminated and received a significant severance payment. We also learned that the CEO had previously been sent a letter by Congress, which we found out through the media. ActBlue’s attorney, from a prominent law firm, has indicated she might have misrepresented facts during Congress’s investigation, which is a quite dramatic way of saying there’s a problem.”
“You misled Congress. Therefore, we are thoroughly delving into this matter. An interim report was issued yesterday, outlining various issues that suggest possible foreign donations, which is clearly illegal,” he said.
As reported by a news outlet, both current and former employees of ActBlue have invoked their Fifth Amendment rights over 100 times while testifying before different House committees.
A report titled “ActBlue Fraud, Part II: Illegal Foreign Contributions and Cover-ups, Mass Resignations and Firings of ActBlue’s Legal and Compliance Team,” indicated that five depositions revealed that employees claimed their “Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination” a total of 146 times in response to vital questions posed by the committee.
