Eric Wang | Institute for Free Speech | 03/08/2019
"Politicians like Ocasio-Cortez have been prohibited from running “dark money-funded campaigns” for the past 40-plus years. They must disclose all of their spending and contributions. Private organizations are not required to do so. This distinction exists because elected officials and candidates wield (or have the potential to wield) the enormous powers of government. Private organizations, no matter how powerful, merely have the power to petition and persuade government. Therefore, politicians must disclose their campaign finances to help deter and monitor against quid pro quo transactions. In short, disclosure requirements apply to politicians — not, as H.R. 1 would have it, to the people.
But it has come to light recently that Ocasio-Cortez and a top campaign aide (now her chief of staff) controlled the Justice Democrats PAC during her campaign that separately raised millions of dollars. Only about 2.5 percent of that money was reported as having been spent on direct support for candidates. Much of that money went to a consulting firm the campaign aide owned and ran. An FEC complaint has been filed alleging the firm impermissibly obscured much of the PAC’s spending. Perhaps Ocasio-Cortez’s “dark-money funded campaign” wasn’t hypothetical after all.
Another FEC complaint alleges the consulting firm was used to pay Ocasio-Cortez’s boyfriend in violation of rules against 'personal use' of campaign funds. Other questions have been raised over whether Ocasio-Cortez and her campaign aide’s control over the Justice Democrats PAC was illegal in and of itself, and which could prompt yet a third FEC complaint."
Full article @
https://dailycaller.com/2019/03/08/wang-house-aoc/
"Politicians like Ocasio-Cortez have been prohibited from running “dark money-funded campaigns” for the past 40-plus years. They must disclose all of their spending and contributions. Private organizations are not required to do so. This distinction exists because elected officials and candidates wield (or have the potential to wield) the enormous powers of government. Private organizations, no matter how powerful, merely have the power to petition and persuade government. Therefore, politicians must disclose their campaign finances to help deter and monitor against quid pro quo transactions. In short, disclosure requirements apply to politicians — not, as H.R. 1 would have it, to the people.
But it has come to light recently that Ocasio-Cortez and a top campaign aide (now her chief of staff) controlled the Justice Democrats PAC during her campaign that separately raised millions of dollars. Only about 2.5 percent of that money was reported as having been spent on direct support for candidates. Much of that money went to a consulting firm the campaign aide owned and ran. An FEC complaint has been filed alleging the firm impermissibly obscured much of the PAC’s spending. Perhaps Ocasio-Cortez’s “dark-money funded campaign” wasn’t hypothetical after all.
Another FEC complaint alleges the consulting firm was used to pay Ocasio-Cortez’s boyfriend in violation of rules against 'personal use' of campaign funds. Other questions have been raised over whether Ocasio-Cortez and her campaign aide’s control over the Justice Democrats PAC was illegal in and of itself, and which could prompt yet a third FEC complaint."
Full article @
https://dailycaller.com/2019/03/08/wang-house-aoc/
