Resources

A new report from Common Cause in partnership with the Communications Workers of America, “Broadband Gatekeepers: How ISP Lobbying and Political Influence Shapes the Digital Divide,” examines lobbying and political spending by the largest ISPs and their trade associations and how these activities have shaped the digital divide.

On May 21, Common Cause filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) violated the ‘soft money’ ban in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) by soliciting unlimited contributions for a super PAC raising money for use in the Georgia Senate runoff elections. The allegations relate to a fundraising video that Rep. Greene recorded for the Stop Socialism NOW PAC, soliciting contributions to defeat candidates Rafael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Georgia’s January Senate runoffs.

Citizen-funded elections lead to healthier democracies and offer a guide to all citizens who believe that democracy is out of balance. Common Cause has been leading the nonpartisan charge for healthier democracy for 50 years, working at the national level and on the ground, state by state. We demand a democracy that works for all of us, but we can only do this together. Join us.

On August 31, 2020, Common Cause filed comments urging the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to conduct a rulemaking proceeding in order to adopt a regulation to prohibit billionaires like Michael Bloomberg from evading federal law limits on contributions to party committees by routing funds through their own campaign committees. Bloomberg’s $18 million contribution to the Democratic National Committee—and hundreds of thousands of dollars in-kind contributions to state Democratic party committees—from his self-financed presidential campaign committee took advantage of a longstanding allowance for candidates to transfer unlimited leftover campaign funds to party committees. Previously those funds were raised under existing contribution limits, but Bloomberg self-financed his campaign to the tune or more than $1 billion.

On January 22, 2020, Common Cause filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging reason to believe that Our Revolution, a nonprofit political organization established by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in 2016 and now supporting his 2020 presidential campaign, violated the federal ‘soft money’ ban. The complaint documents that Our Revolution has solicited contributions explicitly to elect Sanders president, received contributions far in excess of the applicable $5,000 contribution limit and spent funds in connection with federal elections, including current voter mobilization efforts supporting Sanders in Iowa.

On September 23, 2019, Common Cause filed a complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging reason to believe that President Trump, Rudy Giuliani and other political operatives violated the federal law ban on soliciting, or substantially assisting the solicitation of, a “contribution” from a foreign national. The following is a summary of the law and facts detailed in the complaint, as well as some additional background information.