ActBlue, the powerhouse fundraising platform for Democrats, has landed itself in hot water after admitting it accepted donations made with foreign-bought gift cards until September 2024. This startling revelation has triggered concerns among Republican lawmakers, who fear the platform may have been exploited by foreign actors to funnel illicit money into Democratic campaigns.
The admission was revealed as part of an ongoing investigation led by the House Administration Committee, chaired by Representative Bryan Steil (R-WI). The committee has been probing potential vulnerabilities in ActBlue’s system, specifically whether foreign adversaries like China, Russia, Iran, or Venezuela could have influenced U.S. elections through fraudulent donations.
On Tuesday, Steil announced that ActBlue, under subpoena, provided documents confirming it only implemented stricter verification protocols this fall. These new measures block donations made with foreign prepaid gift cards and those linked to high-risk or sanctioned countries. “While this is a positive step forward, there is still more work to be done to ensure our campaign finance system is fully protected from fraud and unlawful foreign interference,” Steil told Just the News. He highlighted that ActBlue was still accepting these questionable donations in July, a period of record-breaking Democratic fundraising.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) took to X (formerly Twitter) to denounce ActBlue’s delayed response, calling it “ILLEGAL.” Johnson declared, “The @HouseAdmin Committee will continue this important investigation into ActBlue next Congress. Our work here is just getting started.”
The documents provided by ActBlue detail their new policies, effective as of September 2024, to automatically reject donations using foreign or domestic prepaid cards and those flagged as high-risk by their fraud detection provider, Sift. This revelation prompted further scrutiny into Sift’s role in ActBlue’s operations. In October 2023, concerns arose after reports suggested ActBlue was accepting donations without requiring a card verification value (CVV), potentially violating federal campaign finance laws.
In response to these findings, Steil introduced the SHIELD Act, aimed at tightening donor verification processes. The legislation mandates the use of CVV codes and billing addresses for all donations while banning contributions made via prepaid cards. The SHIELD Act swiftly passed a committee vote, reflecting growing bipartisan concern over election integrity.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-OH) and Steil also sent a letter to Sift CEO Kris Nagel, expressing “urgent concerns” about illicit foreign funding. They cited suspicious donation patterns, including frequent contributions from elderly and low-income Americans, suggesting foreign actors could be exploiting these vulnerabilities.
Under the Federal Election Campaign Act, foreign contributions are strictly illegal, making ActBlue’s failure to implement safeguards until recently a serious issue. This investigation into ActBlue is likely to intensify as lawmakers seek to close loopholes and protect U.S. elections from foreign interference.
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