It’s Called Influence-Buying
FRED WERTHEIMER’S WEEKLY NOTE | AUGUST 8, 2019
“How do you explain a billionaire businessman soliciting $250,000 checks to support the reelection of a President that he does not like and that he strongly disagrees with on such fundamental issues?”
There are two huge loopholes in the federal limits on contributions to national party committees that are little known to the public. These loopholes allow federal officeholders to solicit millionaires and billionaires for six-and-seven figure contributions to the parties that will benefit the officeholders.
These loopholes provide opportunities for corruption and the appearance of corruption and Democracy 21 has developed proposals that would close them.
An example of one of the loopholes in action was revealed this week when it became public that billionaire Steven Ross would be holding a fundraiser for President Trump where donors could write checks for as much as $250,000 per donor. This led to an immediate backlash and a call to boycott some of Ross’ businesses.
Donors can give $2,800 per donor, per election to presidential candidate Trump and $35,500 per donor per year to the Republican National Committee to use to support its presidential candidates. Donors can also give $10,000 per donor, per year to each state party.
But a misguided Supreme Court decision in McCutcheon v. FEC declared unconstitutional a limit on the total amount an individual can give to all candidates and parties combined in an election cycle.
As a result, a presidential candidate using a joint fundraising committee for the candidate, the national party, and the state parties can solicit from an individual checks over a two-year period of $250,000, or $500,000, or $1 million, to be spent on the candidate’s campaign.
Ross had previously made clear he was no fan of the President. In one article, Ross said “I don’t like Donald, OK, we can stop there. We’d be here all day.” In another report, Ross said that as a “an outspoken champion of racial equality, inclusion, diversity, public education, and environmental sustainability,” he strongly disagreed with a number of Trump’s policies.
So how do you explain a billionaire businessman soliciting $250,000 checks to support the reelection of a President that he does not like and that he strongly disagrees with on such fundamental issues?
It’s called influence-buying.
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Fred Wertheimer is the Founder and President of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to strengthen our democracy and ensure the integrity and fairness of government decisions and elections. See previous Notes from Fred here.
