President Donald Trump will sign a memorandum on Thursday cracking down on “straw donors” and foreign contributions, in a move widely seen as targeting Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue.
The memorandum, per a fact sheet obtained by the Washington Examiner, follows reports and congressional investigations over what Republicans say are unlawful fundraising activities conducted by ActBlue and other online campaign finance platforms.
ActBlue has faced accusations in Washington, D.C., and across the country of a wide range of wrongdoing, ranging from foreign money laundering to contributions from terrorist groups.
Trump’s memorandum “directs” Attorney General Pam Bondi to investigate and “take appropriate action” concerning allegations that online fundraising platforms such as ActBlue are used to funnel illegal “straw” or “dummy” contributions to left-leaning U.S. political candidates and committees.
The memo says that congressional investigations have revealed “significant fraud schemes” via ActBlue, and that hundreds of donations made on the platform over a 30-day period ahead of the 2024 election came from foreign internet protocol addresses using prepaid cards, which could violate U.S. law.
Bondi will report the results of the investigation to Trump through presidential counsel.
ActBlue is a not-for-profit payment processor used by Democratic political campaigns at all levels of government and left-of-center activist groups to handle online contributions. The platform plays a vital role in the liberal financial ecosystem, having processed well over $16 billion in donations since its founding in 2004.
The liberal payment processing juggernaut, however, has been thrown into disarray this year. The New York Times reported on March 5 that at least seven senior staffers resigned in late February, including its top legal officer. The reason for the exodus is not yet known.
Conservatives initially complained that ActBlue accepted donations without input credit verification value, the three numbers on the back of credit cards, which they claimed increased the risk of fraudulent contributions.
ActBlue patched that up but still allowed contributions from PayPal, Google Pay, or Venmo accounts and prepaid gift cards, as well as other forms of untraceable funds, its critics say.
“President Trump is taking action to address malign actors and foreign nationals who seek to illegally influence American elections, undermining the integrity of our electoral process,” the fact sheet reads.
The White House alleges that “bad actors” have evaded source and donation amount limits by breaking large donations into smaller ones attributed to numerous individuals, sometimes without their consent or knowledge.
“ActBlue has become notorious for its lax standards that enable unverified and fraudulent donations,” the fact sheet says, citing 237 donations made from foreign IP addresses using prepaid cards during a 30-day period last year.
Chaos and fraud: A look at the allegations facing ActBlue
Several state-level attorneys general have also opened investigations into ActBlue over suspicious donations, aiming to enhance what conservatives describe as election integrity.
The Washington Examiner has contacted the Department of Justice and ActBlue seeking comment.
