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House oversight Republicans cite the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue
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House oversight Republicans cite the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue

House Republicans issued a subpoena this week Democratic Fundraising Platform, ActBlue, as part of an ongoing effort to obtain more information about certain questionable transactions and the platform’s donor verification process.

In a letter to ActBlue CEO Regina Wallace-Jones, House Oversight Committee Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis., asked the platform to provide more information about its donor verification process and policies before 6 November, the day after the general end of this year. choice.

He the subpoena said it’s an attempt to “protect our nation’s elections” and “close loopholes in our campaign finance system,” including contributions from donors whose identities have not been so rigorously vetted.

The request, sent just days before the presidential election, comes as Republicans have expressed growing concern about ActBlue’s security policies and processes for vetting donors, which the platform has addressed in recent months with some changes of politics.

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Kamala Harris at campaign event in New Hampshire

Vice President Kamala Harris arrives to speak at a campaign event in North Hampton, New Hampshire. (Photo by Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty)

Until recently, the platform did not require online donors to submit their credit card verification value (CVV) when donating online, drawing criticism from Republicans, including Steil, who noted that the lack verification could allow “potentially fraudulent and illicit financial activities. “by foreign donors.

“We cannot allow foreign actors to influence our elections through campaign financing. The Committee’s investigation found that foreign actors could take advantage of ActBlue’s inadequate security protocols,” Steil said in his letter.

To date, there has been no evidence or record of such activity taking place. In addition, ActBlue, in turn, began requesting CVV numbers in August.

The subpoena request follows a New York Post report this week, the Treasury Department identified “hundreds of transaction records” made on the app that were flagged by banks as potentially suspicious. The department is currently reviewing those records.

House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., said this week that his office is “working closely with the Treasury” to get the materials “quickly.”

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Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., seated at the congressional hearing

Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chairman of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, makes a point on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Steil and the rest of the House Stewardship Committee are also working to get more information from ActBlue about donations collected in previous months.

On Wednesday, Steil sent a letter to the platform seeking information related to donor verification policies and potential vulnerabilities of the platform.

He also introduced legislation in September that seeks to require political committees and donor platforms like ActBlue to adopt stricter vetting processes.

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Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., right, greets Bruce Springsteen at a campaign rally in support of Vice President Kamala Harris in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

The legislation would also prohibit accepting contributions from prepaid gift cards and adopt a bipartisan FEC recommendation to prohibit individuals from “knowingly aiding or abetting someone” who makes a contribution on another person’s behalf.

The the legislation was passed by the committee by voice vote and has not yet been brought up for a full vote.

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