Texas AG Paxton Discovers ‘Untraceable’ Funds on Democratic Fundraising Platform

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has uncovered significant irregularities in Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, identifying a pattern of suspicious and untraceable donations. Paxton’s investigation, which began in 2023, points to a large number of donations made under false identities, raising concerns about potential fraud and illegal contributions to political campaigns.

Paxton revealed that donations appear to be systematically made using untraceable payment methods, including prepaid cards an increasingly popular tool for those seeking to conceal their identities. His findings have led to a formal petition to the Federal Elections Commission (FEC), urging the adoption of stricter rules to safeguard the integrity of U.S. elections.

One of the main issues highlighted by Paxton is the use of “straw donor” transactions, where a contribution is made using another person’s identity without their knowledge. According to Paxton, ActBlue’s lack of regulations regarding prepaid cards leaves the door wide open for bad actors to exploit this loophole.

The investigation reaffirmed earlier public reporting, which found that individuals often on fixed incomes and unaware of their supposed involvement were listed as donors. Paxton pointed out that these names were used to make hundreds of donations, some occurring multiple times a day, accumulating to thousands of dollars annually. "It strains credulity to believe these contributions were legitimately made by the person whose name was provided," Paxton noted.

Paxton’s petition to the FEC calls for an amendment requiring political committees to implement procedures ensuring that donor identities match the information provided by their payment card issuer. The petition also urges new rules to ensure that committees are maintaining adequate records, especially when dealing with prepaid cards.

In a press release, Paxton warned that without these necessary reforms, foreign money could easily be funneled into U.S. elections and that contribution limits could be exceeded with “trivial ease.” His petition emphasized that ActBlue had previously resisted implementing prepaid card regulations, despite the risk of facilitating illegal transactions.

“Our investigation into ActBlue has uncovered facts indicating that bad actors can illegally interfere in American elections,” Paxton said. “It is imperative that the FEC close off the avenues we have identified by which foreign contributions or excessive donations could be unlawfully funneled to political campaigns.”

With the 2024 election cycle fast approaching, the results of Paxton’s investigation are likely to add fuel to ongoing debates over election security and campaign finance reform. If the FEC takes action based on Paxton’s findings, the move could have a significant impact on how online fundraising platforms, like ActBlue, operate moving forward.

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