White House & U.S. House: CLC Calls for FEC Overhaul, Submits Congressional Testimony on Dysfunctional Agency

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Today, the Campaign Legal and a group of reform organizations urged President Obama to break the gridlock at the Federal Election Commission by nominating new commissioners and in congressional testimony urged the complete overhaul of the dysfunctional enforcement agency.

“For years the FEC has ignored congressional intent and carved out loopholes in the laws passed by Congress, but has reached a new low and currently presides over a system of its own creation where money laundering has been legalized on a colossal scale,” said Legal Center FEC Program Director Paul S. Ryan.  “The FEC has broken down to the point that if it is to perform its duty to enforce the nation’s campaign finance laws passed by Congress, a housecleaning of commissioners must take place.”

Reform groups held a press conference on Capitol Hill to draw attention to a House Administration Committee’s sham ‘oversight’ hearing today, in which only the commissioners from the agency itself are being called to testify despite repeated requests for a broader spectrum of witnesses.  

In their letter to President Obama the groups urged him to quickly nominate qualified candidates who will enforce the laws on the books.      

In testimony submitted to the committee, the Campaign Legal Center along with Democracy 21 called on Congress to replace the dysfunctional FEC altogether with a differently-structured agency willing and able to enforce the campaign finance laws passed by Congress.

The groups signing the letter to President Obama include the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, CREW, Democracy 21, League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.

To read the testimony submitted to the House Administration Committee by the Campaign Legal Center and Democracy 21, click here.

To read the letter sent to President Obama by the reform groups, click here.