Democrats' Digital Fundraising Strategies Under Attack from Trump Administration
Laid-Back Take on Trump's Fundraising Target:
Hey there! You might've heard that Prez Trump's got his sights set on some online fundraising websites, 'cause let's face it, they're kinda powering most Democratic campaigns these days. And one of 'em, ActBlue, happens to be the Democratic Party's main grassroots fundraising tool.
In a move that sounded sorta suspicious, Trump just signed an executive order on Thursday to look into ActBlue. The order suggests there might be foreign nationals slipping in donations to American campaigns through such fundraising sites. To get to the bottom of this, Trump roped in his new Attorney General, Pam Bondi, and the Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessant, to dig for evidence.
The executive order notes that there've been whispers and investigations in Congress that these online fundraising platforms have participated in money laundering schemes to funnel prohibited contributions to political candidates. Fancy phrases like "straw donations" and "dummy accounts" got tossed around to describe the shady tactics supposedly being used.
Basically, folks are wondering if folks are breaking up big contributions into smaller ones, hiding them amongst a crowd of apparently unrelated individuals, and maybe even using gift cards or prepaid credit cards to avoid detection. Scary stuff, huh?
Bondi and Bessant have the authority to investigate these fundraising tools for signs of foreign influence using all legal means necessary. Gizmodo tried to get more deets from the Trump admin, but so far, crickets.
The order also refers to a previous House Republicans' probe into ActBlue, which apparently found evidence of foreign-based fraud on the platform.
On the Republican side of things, they got their own fundraising operation called WinRed, launched during Trump's first term. While it's been criticized by some Republicans themselves, it didn't quite catch on like ActBlue. The platform's been investigated by several state attorneys general for some questionable tactics they use to encourage donations.
[1] https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-improving-campaign-finance-disclosure-transparency/[2] https://www.congress.gov/report/116srpt219/text[3] https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/actblue-trump-investigation/2021/04/13/ad093a98-24ce-11eb-96d0-69cab9ffe063_story.html
- Amidst the ongoing investigation into ActBlue by the Trump administration, tech experts and policy-and-legislation enthusiasts are closely watching the future of online fundraising and technology, given the potential implications of money-laundering policies and politics.
- With the executive order signed by President Trump, there is increasing attention towards general news on the scrutiny of online fundraising platforms like ActBlue, and the possibility of foreign influence in domestic campaigns, which raises concerns about the transparency and accountability of technology in the political sphere.
- In light of the controversy surrounding ActBlue and the growing interest in online fundraising platforms like WinRed, it's clear that the intersection of technology and politics in the realm of policy-and-legislation will be a pressing issue in the near future, especially as both political parties strive to optimize their fundraising tools for maximum impact.
