How to Raise $89M in Small Donations – and Make It Disappear

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/05/14/us/politics/scam-robocalls-donations-policing-veterans.html

by asnyder • 3 years ago

42 10 3 years ago

nytimes.com

moonshotideas• 3 years ago

https://archive.is/3Ypsg

wrycoder• 3 years ago

“American Police Officers Alliance” calling.

asnyder2• 3 years ago

Have gotten similar calls from "NY Sergeants Association" too. This is surely the tip of the iceberg though as it doesn't even cover all those political fundraising PACs that are similarly running these fraudulent rackets raising money for candidates when in fact they're just funding themselves on loop.

Some that come to mind stop-republicans.org, Progressive Turnout Project: https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/progressive-turnout-project... https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs...

We can see the vast majority of funds raised just go to themselves and very little to the causes they profess. Just scamming small and big donors alike, with no FTC or FEC actions whatsoever. Seems like this is a giant loophole for fraud that gets even worse with automation year after year.

Spivak• 3 years ago

I feel like you chose an odd group as your example since the progressive turnout group's whole thing is to spend the money themselves on direct advertising to voters. Whether they deliver on the promise of "give us money and we'll get more people out to the polls" is one thing, but the mission at least is sound. Elections are won by getting more of your base out to vote because the US has such a low turnout.

Republicans aren't shy about it either which is why there's such a huge backlash against Gen Z voting more than expected for young people. My (red) state's reaction is to just outright make passing citizen initiated legislation impossible because democrats have been on a successful run of passing bills since it's one flat vote and not gerrymandered to hell.

asnyder2• 3 years ago

My experience with them is via their shady false donation-match mailings, as well as copy cat spam even after unsubscribing and asking to be removed.

Further, looking into their payment records they have rarely contributed to anything outside themselves and have no documentation regarding any mailings or any actions related from their fundraising. Further their fundraising mailings specifically state numerous actions they'll undertake as well as distributions, to candidates, none of which seems to actually be happening despite what they claim in their fundraising.

According to my rough napkin math, seems more than 80% of the funds raised goes to pay themselves. Those funds would be much better spent on the actual actions they profess versus inflated operations costs, and fundraising process on loop.

metadat• 3 years ago

Every few years I get a call from a fudraiser guy with the "California Police and Firemen Association" or similar. This man has a wonderful, celebrity-class, cop-sounding voice.

I've never liked this guy repeatedly calling me, because every time I've always asked to be removed from the list.

So this past year I was a mild jerk to him, yanking him around a bit and wasting time, and he immediately descended and transformed into a huge asshole and began berating and verbally abusing me before abruptly hanging up.

Sketch.

Maybe now he'll scrub me?

fineIllregister• 3 years ago

The groups avoided helping candidates on purpose, said Mr. Engle, a Washington lawyer they recently hired as a legal advisor. He said they made sure not to exceed $1,000 in direct aid to federal candidates — which could trigger a requirement to register with the F.E.C. — or to exceed state-by-state thresholds that would trigger a requirement to register with state agencies. That left them regulated by the I.R.S., which monitors 527 groups that the others do not.
“Helping candidates directly is not always the best use of money. Candidates often have more than enough money,” Mr. Engle said.

It's wild that the lawyer they hired is saying this in their defense.

retreatguru• 3 years ago

This kind of investigative journalism is why I subscribe to the New York Times.

stuaxo• 3 years ago

Why isn't this fraud ?

2devnull• 3 years ago

People’s political opinions are a huge industry in America. From the DNC/RNC all the way down to street beggers; political affiliation separates fools from their money. The news media, who used to publish news, have caught on, in their ever growing desperation to remain viable, and turned to 24/7 rage bait political content. It’s all supported by viewers (and donors!) like you!

https://www.npr.org/2022/04/07/1091487910/blm-leaders-face-q...

How to Raise $89M in Small Donations – and Make It Disappear

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