Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search
 

think

(11,641 posts)
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 10:54 AM Apr 2016

Young Turks: DNC & 33 States Used Loopholes to Funnel Millions Into 'Hillary Victory Fund"

Watch: Young Turks Reveals How the DNC and 33 States Used Loopholes to Funnel Millions Into the 'Hillary Victory Fund'

By Alexandra Rosenmann / AlterNet April 5, 2016

$26 million went into the Clinton campaign before a single vote was cast.

According to Counterpunch and Cenk Uygur, the host of Young Turks, the DNC and different states' Democaratic parties have long been funneling money into Hillary Clinton’s campaign, otherwise known as "laundering by the millions." Counterpunch explains:

In August 2015, at the Democratic Party convention in Minneapolis, 33 democratic state parties made deals with the Hillary Clinton campaign and a joint fundraising entity called The Hillary Victory Fund. The deal allowed many of her core billionaire and inner circle individual donors to run the maximum amounts of money allowed through those state parties to the Hillary Victory Fund in New York and the DNC in Washington.


It almost goes without saying that no one had cast a single vote yet in the Democratic primary. “Not only had we not decided who the Democratic nominee was in August of 2015, we still haven’t decided,” pointed out The Young Turks Host, Cenk Uygur on Monday. “But back then, the DNC already made their decision.”

The DNC was so positive that Hillary was going to be the nominee - or that they wanted her to be the nominee - that they began a process of actively funnelling money to her campaign. At the same time, they also convinced 33 Democratic state parties to go along with the plan. ...




http://www.alternet.org/election-2016/how-scotus-decision-best-described-citizens-united-steroids-used-state-loopholes

30 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Young Turks: DNC & 33 States Used Loopholes to Funnel Millions Into 'Hillary Victory Fund" (Original Post) think Apr 2016 OP
And Carville pretends to be fucking mystified about how so many Democrats are not djean111 Apr 2016 #1
I saw this last night and Cenk to post it everywhere, but I couldn't figure out where it was pdsimdars Apr 2016 #2
"It's HER Democratic Party." longship Apr 2016 #3
knr frylock Apr 2016 #4
I believe it would be helpful for a financial expert to diagram FlatBaroque Apr 2016 #5
Sanders supporters spreading The Big Lie geek tragedy Apr 2016 #6
Did $26 million dollars go into the "Hillary Victory Fund" or not? think Apr 2016 #7
Yes, it's a fundraising tool for the national and state parties geek tragedy Apr 2016 #8
"The deal allowed many of her core billionaire and inner circle individual donors" think Apr 2016 #9
where are you seeing that the state parties get the money then put it in geek tragedy Apr 2016 #10
OpenSecrets.org think Apr 2016 #11
you just proved my point. geek tragedy Apr 2016 #12
No. I fell for your game and lost track of what the problem was. Here is how it works: think Apr 2016 #13
so you think raising funds for the DNC and state parties is a problem? nt geek tragedy Apr 2016 #14
Do you think wealthy donors should FUNNEL HUGE donations through the "Hillary Victory Fund" think Apr 2016 #15
yes, I want the party to have money to fund GOTV efforts geek tragedy Apr 2016 #17
Soft money lead to corruption in both parties. That is why it was banned by congress before think Apr 2016 #18
this isn't soft money, it's subject to limits. nt geek tragedy Apr 2016 #19
They are SO dirty dana_b Apr 2016 #16
The Clintons and their ilk are the problem... NOT the solution. AzDar Apr 2016 #20
I don't like to call people stupid and ignorant...so I won't brooklynite Apr 2016 #21
The money is funneled through the "Hillary Victory Fund" using a loophole that allows big donations think Apr 2016 #22
...and EACH of those Committees can only contribute $5,000 ONCE to the Clinton campaign. brooklynite Apr 2016 #23
Here's how that has worked out so far: think Apr 2016 #24
Okay, the State Parties have given money to the DNC... brooklynite Apr 2016 #25
Where does the article say "funnels money to Clinton"? It went to her fund and it is being used think Apr 2016 #26
From the OP: " the DNC and different states' Democaratic parties have long been funneling money... brooklynite Apr 2016 #27
So then the states have gotten all the money & it's not being used in other ways? think Apr 2016 #28
Because PACs don't exist. (nt) jeff47 Apr 2016 #29
Rigged economy, rigged media, rigged DNC. RiverLover Apr 2016 #30
 

djean111

(14,255 posts)
1. And Carville pretends to be fucking mystified about how so many Democrats are not
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 11:38 AM
Apr 2016

supporting Hillary or donating to the DNC.

 

pdsimdars

(6,007 posts)
2. I saw this last night and Cenk to post it everywhere, but I couldn't figure out where it was
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 11:57 AM
Apr 2016

THANKS!

If there was any doubt about DWS and the Democrats shilling for Hillary . . . is that Shillarying?

longship

(40,416 posts)
3. "It's HER Democratic Party."
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:10 PM
Apr 2016

Again, the entitlement ploy.

"It's her turn!"

Bring on the coronation. All bow down to Queen Hillary. Women should curtsy.

Or maybe we ought to be able to vote for our choice, hopefully for a real Democrat, Bernie Sanders.

FlatBaroque

(3,160 posts)
5. I believe it would be helpful for a financial expert to diagram
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:34 PM
Apr 2016

all the ways in which the Clinton's launder money. It would be a helpful picture to look at as it will help explain how Her get's the strength and energy to FIGHT HARD for average American families.

#WheresThe50Million?

 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
6. Sanders supporters spreading The Big Lie
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:36 PM
Apr 2016

This is the mechanism by which Clinton raises money for the state parties, not vice versa.

She hosts the fundraiser, she gets $2700, the state party gets the rest.

This has been pointed out over and over.

This is not a loophole or embezzlement or bribery.

It's a Democrat raising money for other Democrats.

 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
8. Yes, it's a fundraising tool for the national and state parties
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:48 PM
Apr 2016

The state parties don't contribute anything to it. Neither does the DNC.

There have been two different conspiracy theories about this:

1) yours--that the DNC and state parties are funneling money towards Clinton
2) that Clinton is using it to bribe state parties and the DNC

Example:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511634225

They both can't be true.

And in reality, neither is true.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hillary_Victory_Fund

 

think

(11,641 posts)
9. "The deal allowed many of her core billionaire and inner circle individual donors"
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:57 PM
Apr 2016

Her donors contributed the funds through the 33 state organizations who then put that money into the Hillary Victory Fund.

Are you denying that is what happened?

And no. They are BOTH true. Just different accounts of the same thing.

In fact this article is quoting that one!

 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
10. where are you seeing that the state parties get the money then put it in
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 12:59 PM
Apr 2016

the HVF?

And, no, TYT doesn't count. Neither do USuncut.com or counterpunch


The fund itself (or if you want, the Clinton campaign folks) raise the money and then distribute it.



 

geek tragedy

(68,868 posts)
12. you just proved my point.
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 01:07 PM
Apr 2016

Beneficiaries are people who get paid.

Not the other way around.

You should probably correct or even self-delete your own OP since you just proved it wrong with that link.

 

think

(11,641 posts)
13. No. I fell for your game and lost track of what the problem was. Here is how it works:
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 01:21 PM
Apr 2016
How Hillary Clinton Could Ask A Single Donor For Over $700,000

December 23, 20155:03 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition


Earlier this month, Hillary Clinton attended her first event for an organization called the Hillary Victory Fund. About 160 guests attended, and the event grossed more than $5 million.

The Hillary Victory Fund is a joint fundraising committee for Hillary for America, the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic committees of 32 states and Puerto Rico.

DNC spokesman Eric Walker said the victory fund's mission is to win more than just the White House. "We do not want it to be a lonely victory for the Democratic nominee, who is eventually going to win the presidency," he said.

Presidential candidates have always looked for legal ways to get more campaign cash. In 2008, for instance, the Obama operation asked big donors to give around $30,000, just hitting the legal limits for giving to the campaign, DNC and related committees combined.

This year, by comparison, Hillary Clinton's organization can ask donors to give nearly three-quarters of a million dollars each. Here's how it works:

Donors who are rich — and willing — can give $5,400 to the Clinton campaign, $33,400 to the Democratic National Committee and $10,000 to each of the state parties, about $360,000 in all. A joint fundraising committee lets the donor do it all with a single check.


Read more:
http://www.npr.org/2015/12/23/460762853/how-hillary-clinton-could-ask-a-single-donor-for-over-700-000


 

think

(11,641 posts)
15. Do you think wealthy donors should FUNNEL HUGE donations through the "Hillary Victory Fund"
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 02:11 PM
Apr 2016

using a loophole to raise funds for the Democratic party?

All told, a single donor can give more than $700,000 for the election. That's serious money, according to campaign finance lawyer Brett Kappel. He said, "It also shows you where campaign finance law has gone. We're now back in the era of soft money."

"Soft money" was the term for unregulated contributions to the party committees in the 1980s and '90s. The soft money system led to corruption cases in both major parties, and Congress barred party committees from raising it in 2002.

But eight years later, the Supreme Court gave unregulated money a new path with Citizens United and other court decisions.

http://www.npr.org/2015/12/23/460762853/how-hillary-clinton-could-ask-a-single-donor-for-over-700-000


Bernie doesn't take soft money. As the NPR article states soft money lead to corruption on both parties before.

Hillary apparently could care less about the appearance of soft money and it's potential for corruption. That doesn't surprise me at all....
 

think

(11,641 posts)
18. Soft money lead to corruption in both parties. That is why it was banned by congress before
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 02:32 PM
Apr 2016

Something to remember while advocating using loopholes for the extremely wealthy to fund the Democratic party.

This is the third way where the party relies on wealthy people and corporations to fund them rather than the people.

Bernie gets his money from 2 million individual donors. He is isn't relying on the wealthy to fund his campaign and neither should the Democratic Party.

If the wealthy want to contribute that's great. But exploiting loopholes so they can increase their influence is a dangerous road for a political party where corporations already yield too much power and control.

dana_b

(11,546 posts)
16. They are SO dirty
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 02:13 PM
Apr 2016

I really can't ever imagine returning to this party unless these people are ousted.

brooklynite

(94,713 posts)
21. I don't like to call people stupid and ignorant...so I won't
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 02:49 PM
Apr 2016

How about we punch up this story with some FACTS?

FACT 1: Hillary Clinton signed a Joint-Fundraising Agreement with the DNC and several State Partys. A JFA means that funds are solicited AS joint fundraising and split according to the agreement: e.g. the donor is asked to write a check for $500, with the first $250 going to the candidate, and the remainder going to the Party. It is effectively two contributions made with the same check

FACT 2: Bernie Sanders signed the SAME Joint-Fundraising Agreement. He has not however agreed to raise any funds.

FACT 3: The AMOUNT of the JFA contribution is regulated by Federal and State Law. Youe can give a maximum of $5,400 (Primary and GE) to a candidate. You can give a maximum of $33,400 to the DNC (not - if your complaint is that this is too big an amount, you should perhaps ask Bernie Sanders why he hobnobs with these people at the DSCC contributors' retreat). You can give a maximum of $10,000 to the "Federal Accounts" of State Parties (e.g. funds that can be contributed to Federal candidates) That's $10,000 total, not per State. The amount you can give to State Parties for their local use varies.

FACT 4: DNC and State Parties CANNOT, by FEC regulation, "funnel money to Hillary Clinton". Neither can the State Parties. Each Party Committee is limited to ONE $5,000 contribution to a candidate per election cycle.

 

think

(11,641 posts)
22. The money is funneled through the "Hillary Victory Fund" using a loophole that allows big donations
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 02:54 PM
Apr 2016
How Hillary Clinton Could Ask A Single Donor For Over $700,000

December 23, 20155:03 AM ET
Heard on Morning Edition


Earlier this month, Hillary Clinton attended her first event for an organization called the Hillary Victory Fund. About 160 guests attended, and the event grossed more than $5 million.

The Hillary Victory Fund is a joint fundraising committee for Hillary for America, the Democratic National Committee and the Democratic committees of 32 states and Puerto Rico.

DNC spokesman Eric Walker said the victory fund's mission is to win more than just the White House. "We do not want it to be a lonely victory for the Democratic nominee, who is eventually going to win the presidency," he said.

Presidential candidates have always looked for legal ways to get more campaign cash. In 2008, for instance, the Obama operation asked big donors to give around $30,000, just hitting the legal limits for giving to the campaign, DNC and related committees combined.

This year, by comparison, Hillary Clinton's organization can ask donors to give nearly three-quarters of a million dollars each. Here's how it works:

Donors who are rich — and willing — can give $5,400 to the Clinton campaign, $33,400 to the Democratic National Committee and $10,000 to each of the state parties, about $360,000 in all. A joint fundraising committee lets the donor do it all with a single check.


Read more:
http://www.npr.org/2015/12/23/460762853/how-hillary-clinton-could-ask-a-single-donor-for-over-700-000


That's what is being claimed. That is what appears to be happening....
 

think

(11,641 posts)
24. Here's how that has worked out so far:
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 03:49 PM
Apr 2016
Democratic Party fundraising effort helps Clinton find new donors, too

By Matea Gold and Tom Hamburger February 20 2016

~Snip~

A record 32 state parties signed on to the fund, allowing the committee to solicit donations 130 times greater than what a supporter can give to Clinton’s campaign for the primary.

But the states have yet to see a financial windfall. Meanwhile, Clinton’s campaign has been a major beneficiary, getting an infusion of low-dollar contributions through the committee at a time when rival Bernie Sanders’s army of small donors is helping him close in on her financially. The fund is run by Clinton campaign staff, and its treasurer is Clinton’s chief operating officer.

~Snip~

The early, expansive use of a jumbo-size joint fundraising committee shows how the Clinton campaign has worked to maximize donations from wealthy supporters, seizing on rules loosened by the Supreme Court.

Many states were wary of joining the effort, worried that such a partnership would be perceived as an endorsement of Clinton and might interfere with their efforts to raise money from home state donors. But campaign officials — including Marlon Marshall, Clinton’s director of state campaigns — emphasized that this was a way to strengthen the party at its roots, a message Clinton echoed in the speech she delivered at the Minneapolis meeting to DNC members.

~Snip~

So far, the state parties have served only as a pass-through for their share of the funds. Campaign finance records show that nearly $2 million in donations to the fund initially routed last year to individual state party accounts was immediately transferred to the DNC, which is laboring to pay off millions of dollars in debt.

~Snip~

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Lawrence Noble, a former general counsel of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) who is now with the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center. “Joint victory funds are not intended to be separate operating committees that just support a single candidate. But they appear to be turning the traditional notion of a joint committee into a Hillary fundraising committee.”...

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/democratic-party-fundraising-effort-helps-clinton-find-new-donors-too/2016/02/19/b8535cea-d68f-11e5-b195-2e29a4e13425_story.html

brooklynite

(94,713 posts)
25. Okay, the State Parties have given money to the DNC...
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 04:40 PM
Apr 2016

...still waiting to see how that "funnels money to Clinton".

 

think

(11,641 posts)
26. Where does the article say "funnels money to Clinton"? It went to her fund and it is being used
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 04:51 PM
Apr 2016

to further her campaign just as this last article specifically points out.



brooklynite

(94,713 posts)
27. From the OP: " the DNC and different states' Democaratic parties have long been funneling money...
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 04:56 PM
Apr 2016

...into Hillary Clinton’s campaign, otherwise known as "laundering by the millions."

 

think

(11,641 posts)
28. So then the states have gotten all the money & it's not being used in other ways?
Tue Apr 5, 2016, 05:05 PM
Apr 2016

Ways that are benefiting and furthering Hillary's campaign?

It may be legal but I would certainly disagree that this hasn't been used to further and help her campaign more than it has generated money for other Democrats so far. Maybe it will as it should down the road but only Hillary's campaign and the DNC have benefitted to any extent currently.



Even as it has bolstered the DNC, the Hillary Victory Fund has had striking success bringing in new donors to support Clinton’s fight to beat Sanders for the Democratic nomination. The committee spent more than $4 million prospecting for small-dollar contributors through direct mail and online ads that resemble official campaign material, down to the signature “I’m with her” tagline. The net proceeds raised for the campaign: $3.24 million through the end of 2015.

~Snip~

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said Lawrence Noble, a former general counsel of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) who is now with the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center. “Joint victory funds are not intended to be separate operating committees that just support a single candidate. But they appear to be turning the traditional notion of a joint committee into a Hillary fundraising committee.”

Of the $6.4 million the Hillary Victory Fund spent on operating costs last year, two-thirds went to two Washington, D.C.-area vendors that also work for the Clinton campaign: Bully Pulpit Interactive, which received $1.9 million for online ads, and Chapman Cubine Adams +Hussey, which was paid $2.4 million for direct mail solicitations, Federal Election Commission records show.

The victory fund also sponsors Clinton’s online store, allowing donors who have already given the maximum to her campaign to purchase Hillary lapel pins, caps or car magnets, with their money benefiting the party. It’s similar to the way President Obama’s online shop was run in his 2012 reelection. Aides to Sanders, whose joint fundraising committee with the DNC has not yet been active, said the Hillary Victory Fund appears to be functioning as an arm of Clinton’s campaign....

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/democratic-party-fundraising-effort-helps-clinton-find-new-donors-too/2016/02/19/b8535cea-d68f-11e5-b195-2e29a4e13425_story.html





Latest Discussions»Retired Forums»2016 Postmortem»Young Turks: DNC & 33 Sta...