The American Democracy Legal Fund has filed a supplemental complaint with the FEC against numerous Republican political campaigns and state parties, in addition to Data Trust, the RNC, American Crossroads, Crossroads GPS, the Koch-funded Americans for Prosperity, and i360, alleging illegal coordination. The new complaint targets more than two dozen campaigns and state parties, including McFadden for Senate, Steve Daines for Montana, Cotton for Senate, Tom Reed for Congress, Scott Rigell for Congress, McSally for Congress, the Arizona Republican Party, the Montana Republican State Central Committee, and the West Virginia Republican Party, Inc., in addition to the RNC, American Crossroads, Crossroads GPS, Americans for Prosperity, GOP Data Trust LLC, and i360 LLC. ADLFs previous related complaint is available here, and the new complaint is available in full below and here. The American Democracy Legal Fund holds candidates for office accountable for possible ethics and/or legal violations. It was established by David Brock and is run by Brad Woodhouse. BEFORE THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION American Democracy Legal Fund 455 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20001 Complainant, v. Republican National Committee 310 First Street, SE Washington, DC 20003 American Crossroads P.O. Box 34414 Washington, DC 20043 Crossroads GPS P.O. Box 34413 Washington, DC 20043 Americans for Prosperity 2111 Wilson Blvd, Suite #350 Arlington, VA 22201 GOP Data Trust LLC 735 8th Street SE, Suite #200 Washington, DC 20003 i360, LLC 2300 Clarendon Blvd, Suite #800 Arlington, VA 22201 Arizona Republican Party Timothy Lee, Treasurer 3501 North 24th Street Phoenix, AZ 85016 Montana Republican State Central Committee Debra Brown, Treasurer PO Box 935 Helena, MT 59624 West Virginia Republican Party, Inc. Michelle Wilshere, Treasurer 700 Washington Street – East Suite 201 Charleston, WV 25301 Andrew Walter Andrew Walter for Congress Chris Marston, Treasurer PO Box 13321 Tempe, AZ 85284 Ben Sasse Ben Sasse for US Senate Inc. Mark Fahleson, Treasurer 105 East 6th Street Fremont, NE 68025 Bob Goodlatte Bob Goodlatte for Congress Committee Kenneth Lorenz Prickitt, Treasurer PO Box 292 Roanoke, VA 24002 Bobby Schilling Bobby Schilling for Congress Mitch Heckenkam, Treasurer 367 Avenue of the Cities – Suite D East Moline, IL 61244 Carl DeMaio Carl DeMaio for Congress PO Box 27227 San Diego, CA 92198 Elizabeth Cheney Cheney for Wyoming Mark Vincent, Treasurer 961 Recluse Ct Casper, WY 82609 Tom Cotton Cotton for Senate Bradley Crate, Treasurer PO Box 379 Dardanelle, AR 72834 Doug Ose Doug Ose for Congress Vona Copp, Treasurer 9321 Silverbend Lake Elk Grove, CA 95624 Elise Stefanik Elise for Congress James Morris, Treasurer PO Box 338 Willsboro, NY 12996 Paul Dietzel Friends of Dietzel Brandon Lagarde, Treasurer PO Box 286 Baton Rouge, LA 70821 Karen Handel Handel for Senate Inc. Roger Santi, Treasurer 3970 Old Milton Parkway Alpharetta, GA 30005 William Hurd Hurd for Congress Bradley Crate PO Box 656 Helotes, TX 78023 Steve Lonegan Lonegan for Senate Inc. Scott B. Mackenzie, Treasurer 38 East Ridgewood Ave - Suite 181 Ridgewood, NJ 07450 Lynn Jenkins Lynn Jenkins for Congress, Inc. Paul Kilgore, Treasurer PO Box 727 Huntington, WV 25711 Matt Rosendale Matt Rosendale for Montana Bill Vancanagan, Treasurer 1954 Hwy. 16 Glendive, MT 59330 Mike McFadden McFadden for Senate Paul Kilgore, Treasurer PO Box 4039 Saint Paul, MN 55104 Martha McSally McSally for Congress James Thomas III, Treasurer PO Box 19128 Tucson, AZ 85731 Mike Turner Mike Turner for Congress Kyle Walton Denham, Treasurer 615 N. Hudson – Suite 320 Oklahoma City, OK 73102 Rob Wittman Rob Wittman for Congress Steve Ralls, Treasurer PO Box 999 Montross, VA 22520 Matt Schultz Schultz for Iowa David Overholtzer, Treasurer PO Box 3522 Urbandale, IA 50323 Scott Rigell Scott Rigell for Congress Joseph B. Wood, Jr., Treasurer 915 First Colonial Road – Suite 100 Virginia Beach, VA 23454 Steve Daines Steve Daines for Montana Lorna Kuney, Treasurer PO Box 1598 Helena, MT 59624 Dan Sullivan Sullivan for US Senate Eric Campbell, Treasurer 3705 Arctic Blvd. #447 Anchorage, AK 99503 Tom Reed Tom Reed for Congress Marc Valerio, Treasurer PO Box 10847 Rochester, NY 14610 Respondents. SUPPLEMENTAL COMPLAINT The American Democracy Legal Fund files this complaint with the Federal Election Commission (the “FEC” or “Commission”) under 2 U.S.C. § 437g(a)(1) against the above named respondents (collectively “Respondents”) for numerous violations of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (the “Act”). This complaint supplements a previous complaint submitted to the Commission on October 14, 2014, regarding millions of dollars in illegal “coordinated communications” facilitated through the ongoing, real-time exchange of non-public strategic campaign and party data with groups making purportedly “independent” expenditures (the “Complaint”). As detailed in the Complaint, the RNC has created a for-profit entity, the Data Trust, charged with maintaining and sharing a vast database of information about hundreds of millions of Americans for Republican parties and campaigns. The Data Trust not only operates the RNC’s voter file, however, but also provides the same data to American Crossroads, Crossroads GPS, and numerous other outside organizations that are legally required to operate independently of the Republican Party and its candidates. Moreover, the RNC and the Data Trust have recently partnered with i360, a data management firm that supplies voter information to other conservative organizations, including the Koch brothers’ Americans for Prosperity (“AFP”), one of the largest outside organizations supporting the Republican Party. The Data Trust and i360 have implemented technical upgrades that allow the RNC, Republican campaigns, and any outside groups subscribing to either the Data Trust’s or i360’s voter database to not only “access voter information anytime . . . but update it instantly, so others viewing the voter lists can see the information immediately.”[1] According to the terms of Data Trust/i360 partnership, Clients of either The Data Trust or i360 can improve the data shared with all clients. For example, if a client of either company conducting voter outreach identifies a voter attribute or preference, clients of the other organization will benefit from that information. As a result, conservative groups and campaigns will have more information about voters at their disposal for their own activities than ever before.[2] This move to a real time exchange of non-public, strategically material data through a common vendor constitutes “coordination” under the Act, and means that the purported “independent expenditures” of American Crossroads, Crossroads GPS, AFP and other outside organizations are in fact, excessive, illegal, in-kind contributions to the RNC and other Republican parties and campaigns uploading their information to the Data Trust and i360.. Reports filed with the Commission have revealed the identities of some of the Republican state party committees and federal candidate committees that are using i360’s voter database services, and, therefore, passing on crucial, nonpublic voter information to i360’s other “independent” clients, entities that are legally prohibited from coordinating with the party and candidate committees. The attached schedule of disbursements disclosed on reports filed with the Commission proves that at least 25 Republican candidate committees are using i360 as a vendor. These candidates are paying i360 for such services as “voter contact database subscriptions,” “list acquisition,” “canvassing subscriptions” and “data management monthly canvassing apps.” Moreover, news reports indicate that at least three Republican state central party committees are using i360 for similar voter database and canvassing services.[3] These Republican state party committees and federal candidate committees are identified above as Respondents to this Supplemental Complaint. The Commission’s regulations explain that an expenditure for a communication will be considered an in-kind contribution to a campaign or party if it is (1) paid for by an entity other than the party, candidate or candidate’s campaign; (2) meets certain content standards, including by being a public communication that expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate; and (3) meets certain conduct standards, including the payor and the candidate, the candidate’s opponent, or a political party using a common vendor.[4] The “common vendor” standard is satisfied if the payor uses a particular vendor to create, produce or distribute a communication;[5] when that vendor has provided certain specific services to the candidate identified in the communication, that candidate’s opponent, or a political party during the previous 120 days, including “identifying voters or developing lists”;[6] and the vendor then uses or conveys to the payor material information about the candidate’s or the political party’s plans, projects, activities, or needs, or information used previously in providing services to the candidate or the political party.[7] Here, the disbursements to i360 by the state party committees and candidate committees prove that i360 is serving as a “common vendor” for the committees and for outside groups that are required to remain independent of those committees. Moreover, public statements made by AFP, the RNC and others show that i360’s technology automatically passes material information about the committees’ plans and activities to any and all outside groups that also subscribe to i360, down to the very issues the committees are discussing with a given voter at a given time.[8] Accordingly, each and every time another group pays for a public communication that expressly advocates the election or defeat of any of these candidates, or mentions these candidates, their opponents, or the Democratic or Republican parties in a communication airing within the relevant candidate’s or party’s jurisdiction within 120 days of an election, all three components of the Commission’s “common vendor” test for coordinated communications are satisfied. The payments for the communications are therefore excessive, prohibited contributions to the candidates and state parties. For example, AFP has made nearly $350,000 in supposedly “independent” expenditures opposing U.S. Senator Mark Pryor.[9] Senator Pryor is the opponent of Respondents Tom Cotton and Cotton for Senate, which is a client of i360. Similarly, AFP has made over $100,000 in expenditures opposing U.S. Senator Mark Begich.[10] Senator Begich is the opponent of Respondents Dan Sullivan and Sullivan for US Senate, another i360 client. It appears these expenditures constitute coordinated communications and excessive contributions under the Commission’s “common vendor” rule. We respectfully request that the Commission immediately investigate these newly named Respondents to determine their involvement in what now appears to be a massive scheme to flaunt the Commission’s ban on coordinated communications. The Commission should determine the extent to which these new Respondents have accepted excessive contributions in the form such coordinated communications, enjoin Respondents from further violations of the Act; and assign the maximum fines permitted by law. [1] Alex Roarty, “Did the GOP Just Take a Big Leap Forward in Data?” National Journal (July 14, 2014), available at nationaljournal/politics/did-the-gop-just-take-a-big-leap-forward-in-data-20140714. [2] GOP Data Trust, “Data Trust and i360 Announce Historic Data Sharing Partnership” (Aug. 28, 2014), available at gopdatatrust/blog/?p=95. [3] Jon Ward, “The Behind the Scenes Story of the RNC’s Quest for Data Supremacy,” HuffingtonPost (Apr. 18, 2014), available at huffingtonpost/2014/04/18/rnc-data_n_5153927.html. [4] See 11 C.F.R. §§ 109.21(a), (c)(3), (d)(4). [5] See id. § 109.21(d)(4)(i). [6] See id. § 109.21(d)(4)(ii)(G) (emphasis added). [7] See id. §§ 109.21(d)(4)(iii)(A), (B). [8] See Complaint at 3-7. [9] See Americans for Prosperity 24-Hour Independent Expenditure Report (Oct. 25, 2014), available at docquery.fec.gov/pdf/071/14952549071/14952549071.pdf. [10] See Americans for Prosperity 24-Hour Independent Expenditure Report (Oct. 25, 2014), available at docquery.fec.gov/pdf/089/14952549089/14952549089.pdf.
Posted on: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 14:50:46 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015