The Obama administration has not been shy about its position on campaign finance disclosure: it wants more of it. The IRS targeting of conservative and tea party groups and subsequent proposed rulemaking attempting to severely restrict the political speech rights of 501(c)(4) organizations are the most prominent examples of the administration’s aggressive push to expand donor disclosure. The President himself has repeatedly criticized organizations that withhold their donors’ private information from the public as “shadowy groups” that are bad for democracy.
Yet, perhaps we’re witnessing a change of heart from the administration and its allies, if the website of the 501(c)(4) group setup to advocate the President’s policies, Organizing for Action, is any indication. OFA has posted the names of its donors to a virtual “Donor Wall” to thank them for their contributions. Except that’s not quite accurate. OFA has actually posted only the first name and last initial of its contributors.
It might seem curious to scrub the last name of a person you’re trying to recognize. After all, our presidential memorials are not named the Abraham L, the Thomas J, or the George W. The Super Bowl being played in a few weeks will not be to determine who wins the Vince L Trophy.
We at CCP, however, understand OFA’s decision to keep their donors’ information private. Public disclosure exposes supporters of the President’s agenda to an unnecessary and significant risk of harassment. But while we at CCP harp on this reality, the President’s rhetoric and the administration’s behavior have demonstrated just the opposite. A donor wall thanking undisclosed contributors to a 501(c)(4) organization just doesn’t square with the President publicly describing (c)(4)’s that don’t publicly disclose their donors as a “threat to our democracy.”
Unfortunately, it’s nothing new to see politicians saying one thing and doing another, so we probably shouldn’t expect the Obama administration to change its tone on disclosure any time soon. But actions speak louder than words, Mr. President, and OFA’s donor wall is telling.
Deep down, we at CCP would like to think the President agrees with us that public disclosure exposes donors to an unnecessary and significant risk of harassment. We hope he understands that donating to social welfare groups, even ones that dare to engage in limited political activity, is not a sin to be shamed, but a contribution to society that ought to be encouraged. If only the President would just admit that, and reign in the federal government’s reckless attempts to regulate speech.
