WASHINGTON (WCCO/KFGO) – The Campaign for Accountability (CfA), a non-profit watchdog group, filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission requesting an immediate investigation and enforcement action against Minnesota Rep. Dean Phillips’ presidential campaign committee.
The complaint was filed against Dean 24, Inc., its supporting Super PAC, Pass the Torch USA Inc., and veteran campaign strategist Steve Schmidt for violations of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) and Commission regulations.
The group alleges that there is evidence to suggest the action is necessary based on Schmidt’s self-professed “involvement in the development of Phillips’ campaign strategy.”
They say just weeks before he formed the Pass the Torch PAC, Schmidt and the PAC made $450,000 in coordinated communications with the campaign, which the PAC falsely reported as independent expenditures, and the campaign failed to disclose as in-kind contributions.
“Candidates and their committees cannot coordinate strategy with super PACs,” executive director Michelle Kuppersmith said. “When the architect of the Phillips campaign suddenly moves over to lead a super PAC supporting Phillips’ candidacy – the moment the ink on the blueprint is dry – the coordination is clear.”
The Phillips campaign calls the complaint baseless.
Phillips is currently mounting a rare bid against sitting President Joe Biden for the Democratic presidential nomination. Prior to the complaint Phillips said the Democratic Party was out to get him and “bleed my campaign to death.”
“What the Democratic Party doesn’t want you to know is that there is a massive write-in campaign for Joe Biden right now,” Phillips said. “There’s a Super PAC trying to promote his candidacy as a write-in. And there’s another super PAC set up to get Democratic-leaning independents in New Hampshire to vote for (Republican) Nikki Haley.”
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