The Republican-led House Administration Committee has spent more than a year investigating whether ActBlue, a major Democratic fundraising platform, complied with federal campaign finance laws and blocked illegal donations.
Committee Chairman Brian Steele (R-Wis.)
issued a subpoena On October 30, we provided ActBlue with documents regarding its donor verification policy and the potential for foreign actors, particularly China, Iran, Russia, and Venezuela, to use the platform to launder illicit funds into U.S. political campaigns. Submitted.
still
announced On Tuesday, ActBlue acknowledged in subpoenaed documents that it did not automatically reject foreign gift card donations before the policy change in September.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) responded to the revelations:
states“This is illegal.”
Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah)
tweeted“Federal campaign finance law clearly only applies to Republicans and exists to help Democrats.”
Congressman Mark Molinaro (RN.Y.)
I wrote“Entering the third quarter of campaign financing, Democrats were accepting foreign gift card donations through the Act Blue platform. CVV code verification required as Congressional candidates reported millions of dollars in donations. “This is illegal and outrageous.”
Joe Lonsdale, an American entrepreneur who co-founded Palantir Technologies,
noticed“That's the projection of those who are accusing the other side of collaborating with foreign powers to interfere in our elections.”
The platform has since updated its donor verification policy to state that “Foreign prepaid/gift cards, domestic gift cards, originating from high-risk/sanctioned countries, and with the highest level of risk due to anti-fraud measures. Donations that are determined to be rejected will be automatically rejected.'' Solution provider, Sift.
“We must continue to work to prevent foreign funds from illegally funneling into U.S. political activities during this election cycle.”
just news
reported The policy change comes three days after Steil introduced the Safe Handling of Internet Electronic Donations Act on September 6, it said.
of
invoice It would require political committees to collect credit or debit card authorization values when accepting matching donations over the Internet.
act blue
shown The letter to Steil, dated Nov. 27, 2023, says the platform requires and uses card verification values in “many,” but not all, transactions site-wide.
Additionally, the so-called SHIELD Act requires that the card's billing address be in the United States, unless the donor is an American living abroad or is legally granted permanent residence. In such cases, posters must provide their registered address or identification to the political committee. The bill would also prohibit political committees from receiving donations via general purpose prepaid cards, gift certificates, or store gift cards.
Steil said in a statement that ActBlue's policy change is “a positive step, but there is still work to be done to fully protect our campaign finance system from fraud and unlawful foreign interference.” .
“Documents provided to the committee confirm that ActBlue was still accepting these payment methods in July, a time when Democrats raised record amounts of campaign contributions.” [sic] “Before implementing these safeguards,” the Wisconsin lawmaker continued, “we must continue to work to ensure that foreign funds are not illegally funneled into American political operations during this election cycle. ” It is also important to enact lasting reforms to prevent illegal contributions in future election cycles. ”
Representative Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), Chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said:
wrote a letter On Monday, Steil and I wrote to Sift CEO Kris Nagel requesting documentation regarding the company's efforts to prevent fraudulent transactions in ActBlue and related communications.
In a recent data analysis of Federal Election Commission records, Republican lawmakers found that “large donations in excess of what designated donors could pay, as well as uncharacteristic contributions from registered voters, suddenly went to opposition candidates. “Suspicious transactions conducted using ActBlue have come to light.” Donations from vulnerable groups, such as the elderly and first-time donors, are occurring at an unusually high rate. ”
Jordan and Steil would like to know more about the security measures Sift provides to ActBlue, given that they may have been exploited by malicious actors both domestically and internationally.
The House Administration Committee is likely to explore these and other concerns about the platform during its Dec. 18 hearing on foreign interference in U.S. elections.
act blue
said Users said in an Oct. 30 statement that the company “adheres to the highest legal and ethical standards, and all contributions made through ActBlue are disclosed in full compliance with federal, state, and local law.” “It will be done,” he said.
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