The secret giving is made possible by a regulatory loophole at the FEC. The groups, usually organized as 501(c)(4) social welfare organizations or 501(c)(6) business associations, don’t register as political committees with the commission. With the loophole, the FEC wants donor disclosure only when a donor earmarks the money for specific ads.
The top four spenders identified by Issue One are the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the mainstream conservative Crossroads GPS, the Koch network’s Americans for Prosperity and the National Rifle Association. Issue One says that collectively, the four groups pumped at least $357 million into elections between 2010 and 2016.
So, a few things here -
If you think money should be taken out of politics, this is a very small step in the right direction.
It’s interesting to see that the NRA is among the 4 largest donors. Many here believe the NRA is not a huge lobbyist. I wonder if members will care that their dues basicly go to elect republicans.
My god, that’s a lot of money. $357M spent to sway voters…yikes.
Does it bother you learning that your membership dues have been used to campaign for Donald Trump, on his behalf? Given your feelings on the man himself.
Yes, I do have some personal conflicts on that front. I had 5 years prepaid prior to Trump entering office. When my renewal comes around, I’ll evaluate what I’ll do then. If Trump is still in office, I won’t renew at that point.
In the meantime, I have pretty much thrown their solicitations for more donations into the shredder as I get them and I block all of their telemarketer calls as they come in. I have decided that, while Trump is in office, they won’t be getting another dime from me.
Well in all honesty I wouldn’t be surprised if Rush doesn’t donate any money to political groups considering he’s an actor playing the role of a conservative for gobs of money.
Completely fair my friend. It would be nice if you had an option of requesting what your membership dues went to. Not sure if that is even possible or not though.
Soros doesn’t contribute to political campaigns. Soros gives money to people who give money to people who contribute to political campaigns. If there is one thing that Soros is not, it’s stupid.
