April 24, 2025
MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY
THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
THE COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT
SUBJECT: Investigation into Illegal “Straw Donor” and Overseas Contributions in American Elections
Federal regulation (52 U.S.C. 30121 and 30122) strictly prohibits making political contributions within the identify of one other particular person, in addition to contributions by international nationals.
However these legal guidelines designed to guard American democracy, press stories and investigations by congressional committees have generated extraordinarily troubling proof that on-line fundraising platforms have been keen members in schemes to launder extreme and prohibited contributions to political candidates and committees.
Particularly, these stories elevate considerations that malign actors are searching for to evade Federal supply and quantity limitations on political contributions by breaking down massive contributions from one supply into many smaller contributions, nominally attributed to quite a few different people, doubtlessly with out the consent and even information of the putative contributors. The stories additionally elevate considerations that such “straw donations” are being made by way of “dummy” accounts, doubtlessly utilizing reward playing cards or pay as you go bank cards to evade detection.
Additional, there may be proof to recommend that international nationals are searching for to misuse on-line fundraising platforms to improperly affect American elections. A latest Home of Representatives investigation revealed {that a} platform named ActBlue had lately detected not less than 22 “vital fraud campaigns”, almost half of which had a international nexus. Throughout a 30-day window throughout the 2024 marketing campaign, the platform detected 237 donations from international IP addresses utilizing pay as you go playing cards, indicating that this exercise stays a urgent concern.
These actions undermine the integrity of our electoral course of. Subsequently, I direct the Legal professional Normal, in session with the Secretary of the Treasury, to make use of all lawful authority, as needed, to analyze allegations concerning the illegal use of on-line fundraising platforms to make “straw” or “dummy” contributions or international contributions to political candidates and committees, and to take all acceptable actions to implement the regulation.
I additional direct the Legal professional Normal to report again to me by way of the Counsel to the President inside 180 days of the date of this memorandum on the outcomes of the investigation.
This memorandum isn’t meant to, and doesn’t, create any proper or profit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at regulation or in fairness by any occasion towards america, its departments, companies, or entities, its officers, workers, or brokers, or every other particular person.
DONALD J. TRUMP
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