As the power of dark money in our political system rapidly grows and the
Koch Brothers prepare to dump $900 million dollars into Republican Cabal coffers
this next election cycle, the Department of Justice has decided to make a
strong statement to remind everyone that while the FEC is crippled by
partisanship, someone is still watching.Tyler Harber, a
Republican campaign manager for Chris Perkin’s campaign to unseat Rep.
Gerry Connoley (D-VA), was convicted to two years in prison by a federal
court for simultaneously coordinating an election campaign and a Super
PAC at the same time. Harber shamefully admitted that “I did it, it was
wrong when I did it, and I knew it was wrong when I did it.”
But
in an alarming statement, Harber added that “it was something I had
seen other people do. … These folks didn’t get caught.” It will come as
no surprise to find this illegal practice widespread on the Republican
side of politics, where corruption has penetrated the very party
culture.
Leslie R. Caldwell, assistant attorney general in the
Justice Department’s Criminal Division, made it clear that Loretta
Lynch’s DOJ is watching: “As the first conviction for illegal campaign
coordination, this case stands as an important step forward in the
criminal enforcement of federal campaign finance laws. Illegal campaign
coordination can be difficult to detect, which is why we strongly
encourage party or campaign insiders to come forward and blow the
whistle.”
It’s vitally important that the DOJ takes up the
mantle of defending our democracy, as candidates like Jeb Bush cheat the
system and unofficially campaign around the country, collecting
millions unrestricted by campaign finance limitations and allowing his
Super PAC to manage his campaign. We can’t let the Republicans buy
themselves a Presidency with dark money and illegal coordination. .
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