Press Releases
Watchdog: Amid Calls for FEC Reform, MAGA Majority Pushes For Even Less Transparency in Campaign Finance
WASHINGTON D.C. – As the Federal Election Commission (FEC) faces its first Congressional oversight hearing in years amid calls for overdue reform, government watchdog Accountable.US called on the MAGA-led House Administration Committee to abandon its efforts to further shroud dark money special interest groups that invite campaign finance law violations and corruption. Ahead of the hearing, Accountable.US released a review on how the FEC has faced consistent challenges since the 1990’s and today is struggling to punish campaigns and corporate mega donors that flout the law at a time more undisclosed dark money is pouring into politics than ever before.
As Ranking Member Morelle said in anticipation of the hearing, “Congress should not and cannot wait to pass reforms to put the FEC in position to enforce the law and hold candidates, committees, and mega donors accountable to voters.”
This summer, the House Administration Committee advanced its so-called American Confidence In Elections (ACE) Act that includes a ban on nonprofit donor disclosure, a long-term priority of powerful right-wing activist Leonard Leo and his billionaire backers.
Many in the MAGA House Majority want to make it even easier for dark money corporate and foreign special interests to influence campaigns in the shadows at a time when the FEC is paralyzed with partisan gridlock. The badly outdated FEC structure has created a perfect storm for countless campaign finance violations and unchecked corruption that undermines our democracy, yet the MAGA Majority wants to make matters worse to the benefit of their billionaire backers,” said Lindsey Melki, Director of Corporate Values & Democracy at Accountable.US.
