Congress widens probe of Democrat fundraising, seeking bank docs on possible foreign funding
October 24, 2024
A Congressional investigation into whether Democrats have been using the ActBlue online donation platform to cheat at fund-raising has expanded into possible foreign funding as House and Senate investigators join forces to demand the Biden administration provide them access to classified intelligence and secret money-laundering reports filed by banks.
In bombshell letters to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, FBI Director Christopher Wray and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines obtained by Just the News, House Administration Committee (HCA) Chairman Bryan Steil, R-Wis., and Sen. Ron Johnson, R-Wis., revealed that Congress is probing whether four specific foreign adversaries have routed money to Democratic Party campaigns during the 2024 election.
“We write to you to raise an urgent concern regarding potential illicit election funding by foreign actors,” the lawmakers wrote Yellen in a letter dated Thursday. “CHA has been investigating claims that foreign actors, primarily from Iran, Russia, Venezuela, and China, may be using ActBlue to launder illicit money into U.S. political campaigns.
“Our investigation has indicated that these actors may be exploiting existing U.S. donors by making straw donations without their knowledge,” the letter added.
Specifically, the lawmakers demanded access to any Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) related to monies passing through Act Blue that were filed by U.S. financial institutions as part of their money-laundering monitoring activities.
SARs are some of the most sensitive documents the industry files with the government. Federal law requires banks to file SAR’s no later than 30 days after the date of initial detection of transactions that raise red flags, such as cash movements exceeding $10,000 and suspicious activity that might signal criminal activity like money laundering or tax evasion.