President Donald Trump signed an executive memorandum on Thursday aimed at investigating ActBlue, the leading fundraising platform used by the Democratic Party.
The memorandum directs Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate allegations related to the unlawful use of online fundraising platforms for making “straw” or “dummy” contributions, as well as foreign contributions to political candidates and committees.
The memo specifically calls out ActBlue, claiming that it has been used to improperly influence American elections.
A White House document accompanying the memo suggests that ActBlue has allowed donors to bypass federal contribution limits by breaking their donations into smaller amounts and attributing them to multiple people.
In response, a spokesperson for ActBlue condemned the executive action, calling it a “brazen attack on democracy in America.” The spokesperson described Trump’s move as an unlawful escalation aimed at stifling political opposition.
They further labeled the administration’s claims against ActBlue as baseless and stated that the platform intends to challenge the directive in court.
The Justice Department has not yet commented on the executive memorandum. ActBlue is a key fundraising tool for Democratic candidates and is often the default donation option on their campaign websites.
It serves as a conduit for individual donations to political campaigns and nonprofit groups, taking a 3.95% processing fee on most donations.
Several Democratic organizations, including the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic Governors Association, issued a joint statement saying that Trump’s memorandum seeks to undermine democratic participation.
They argued that the move is designed to block small-dollar donations from grassroots supporters, while further empowering wealthy donors who already have significant influence.
Throughout his presidency, Trump has made actions against organizations that he perceives as not aligned with his agenda a central focus.
This includes targeting law firms and universities that he views as opponents, such as stripping security clearances from lawyers or threatening to withhold federal funding from non-compliant universities.
Earlier this month, three Republican-led House committees released a report accusing ActBlue of illegal activity and fraud. The report claims that the platform failed to take action against alleged fraud, with GOP lawmakers raising questions about ActBlue’s internal management and legal oversight.
Trump’s memorandum references this report as evidence that ActBlue has facilitated significant fraud campaigns on its platform.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, a known Trump ally, has criticized ActBlue on his social media platform, X. On March 8, he suggested that groups funded by ActBlue were behind recent nationwide protests against his electric vehicle company, Tesla.
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