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Eugene

(62,627 posts)
Mon May 24, 2021, 06:23 PM May 2021

Senate Democrats introduce legislation to ban political committees from using prechecked donation bo

Also: Democrats to introduce bill to prevent default recurring political donations (The Hill)

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Source: Washington Post

Senate Democrats introduce legislation to ban political committees from using prechecked donation boxes

By Colby Itkowitz and Paul Farhi
May 24, 2021 at 6:23 p.m. EDT

A group of Senate Democrats, led by Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Richard J. Durbin of Illinois, introduced legislation Monday that would ban political committees from automatically renewing campaign contributions without a donor’s explicit consent.

The online fundraising tactic, which was embraced by former president Donald Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign, has allowed federal candidates and political parties to shore up their coffers by prechecking a box online that sets up recurring donations — putting the onus on the donor to opt out.

The practice has been criticized as deceptive and predatory. Many Trump supporters who intended to donate only once unwittingly signed up to give recurring contributions, the New York Times reported in April, resulting in credit card complaints and bank overdrafts.

Klobuchar — who is chairwoman of the Senate Rules Committee, which oversees the enforcement of federal election laws — said the tactic victimizes donors who give small contributions.

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Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/senate-bill-prechecked-donation-boxes/2021/05/24/6d142f68-bca6-11eb-9c90-731aff7d9a0d_story.html

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Source: The Hill

Democrats to introduce bill to prevent default recurring political donations

BY JORDAIN CARNEY - 05/24/21 12:54 PM EDT

Senate Democrats are introducing legislation on Monday to ban political campaigns from using pre-checked boxes for recurring political donations.

The bill — spearheaded by Rules Committee Chairwoman Amy Klobuchar (Minn.) and Sen. Dick Durbin (Ill.), the Democratic whip and Judiciary Committee chairman — comes after after the Federal Election Commission (FEC) recommended Congress pass legislation preventing campaigns from using pre-checked boxes on their websites that automatically register an individual to give recurring contributions.

"Following the FEC’s unanimous vote, it’s clear we should take action to ban this practice and ensure contributors are fully informed. This legislation will do just that," Klobuchar said in a statement.

Durbin argued that the pre-checked boxes "tricked contributors into recurring payments" and that the bill would prevent campaigns from "engaging in these deceptive practices."

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Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/555096-democrats-to-introduce-bill-to-prevent-default-recurring-political-donations
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