Sunday, July 05, 2009
Violations of federal election law are likely to go unpunished these days, thanks to the partisan deadlock that’s hampering the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Divided 3-3 between Democratic and Republican appointees, the FEC has routinely failed to take enforcement actions against even the most egregious acts—including threats against individuals to prevent them from making campaign contributions.
Such was the case of Howard Rich, a New York real-estate investor and founder of the conservative activist group Americans for Limited Government. Rich and his group were accused by Senate Democrats of illegally using FEC disclosure reports to track down Democratic Party donors and threaten to publicize their actions. In April, the FEC’s Democratic appointees voted to investigate Rich, but the GOP commissioners opposed the move, killing the probe.
The Republican commissioners—Donald McGahn, Matthew Petersen, and Caroline Hunter, each nominated by President George W. Bush—have been accused of basing their decisions on an ideological belief that opposes the very function of the FEC.
“The three Republican appointees are turning the commission into The Little Agency That Wouldn’t: wouldn’t launch investigations, wouldn’t bring cases, wouldn’t even accept settlements that the staff had already negotiated,” wrote The Washington Post in an editorial. “This is not a matter of partisan politics. These commissioners simply appear not to believe in the law they have been entrusted with enforcing.” Despite its inaction, the FEC has an annual budget of $64 million
-Noel Brinkerhoff
"The Commission Has Been Road-Blocked": Republicans' War On The FEC (by Peter Martin and Zachary Roth, TMPMuckRaker)
Deadlocked in Regulation (editorial, Washington Post)
Federal Election Commission (AllGov)
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