Subject: Re: FW: FLAG: NEWS: Politico Exposes Clinton Campaign ‘Money-Laundering’ Scheme
From: Zac Petkanas <[email-masked]>
To: "Miranda, Luis" <[email-masked]>, Josh Schwerin <[email-masked]>
Cc: "Paustenbach, Mark" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 2 May 2016 16:58:38 -0400

Wow. This slipped through my email. Looping Josh, who is handling on our
end.

On Mon, May 2, 2016 at 1:53 PM, Miranda, Luis <[email-masked]> wrote:

> Hi Christina and Zac. It was great to see you both this weekend. I’m sure
> you already saw the Sanders release calling the HVF money laundering and
> want to make sure we’re in touch. How are you guys responding? We’re going
> to focus on our talking points (see below):
>
>
>
> ·         We welcome any effort by our candidates to help raise money for
> the DNC and state parties.
>
> ·         Similar agreements were set up with both the Clinton campaign
> and the Sanders campaign early in the cycle, precisely because of the
> urgency to build a strong national infrastructure *now* that will help
> elect Democrats up and down the ballot in November. The Sanders campaign
> has not used theirs.
>
> ·         *It’s important to note, the funds that the DNC and state
> parties get through the joint victory funds help strengthen, for example,
> our national voter file and communications, research and digital support
> for state parties and down ballot candidates. That includes training across
> a variety of areas, for example, and access to media monitoring and rapid
> response support. This is helping us NOW to build infrastructure for the
> general election.*
>
> These arrangements are not new or unusual. Similar joint fundraising
> committees were established with our Democratic candidate in both 2008 and
> 2012. And again, both campaigns have signed on and have the option of using
> joint victory funds.
>
> And let’s be clear, neither the DNC nor state parties are subsidizing
> fundraising through these committees for either campaign. For whatever each
> campaign raises under the agreement that then goes to their campaign, that
> campaign pays a directly proportional amount for the cost of that
> fundraising.
>
> ·         Rick Hasen, an influential academic on campaign finance, posted
> an analysis on the Election Law Blog that addressed this issue. Hasen
> states in the article that “it is hard to see what provision of the law” is
> at issue. As the blog points out, “legally” the criticism of the fund
> “seems weak.”   http://electionlawblog.org/?p=81996
> <https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__electionlawblog.org_-3Fp-3D81996&d=CwMFAg&c=XRWvQHnpdBDRh-yzrHjqLpXuHNC_9nanQc6pPG_SpT0&r=ztfeb3sYMwYJc4m6DQzcZ1EDxKmQmE8pe5TrXm4gdCU&m=xosCmCfJlZ5AfIscnIGFPlKd_WqB4JHLY4vSLilK-IE&s=IDZd2_ULQhvZFm33gwH-mCSwcJMtMpjuFI5_FJQQvqk&e=>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* Brinster, Jeremy
> *Sent:* Monday, May 02, 2016 12:09 PM
> *To:* Comm_D
> *Subject:* FLAG: NEWS: Politico Exposes Clinton Campaign
> ‘Money-Laundering’ Scheme
>
>
>
> Weaver calls Joint Fundraising Committee “money-laundering” scheme
>
>
>
> *From:* Michael Briggs [mailto:[email-masked]
> <[email-masked]>]
> *Sent:* Monday, May 02, 2016 12:07 PM
> *To:* Brinster, Jeremy
> *Subject:* NEWS: Politico Exposes Clinton Campaign ‘Money-Laundering’
> Scheme
>
>
>
>
>
> **
>
>
>
> *Politico Exposes Clinton Campaign ‘Money-Laundering’ Scheme*
>
>
>
> *May 2, 2016*
> * Contact: Michael Briggs (802) 233-8653 <%28802%29%20233-8653>*
>
> BURLINGTON, Vt. – U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders’ campaign manager, Jeff
> Weaver, on Monday criticized a Hillary Clinton campaign fundraising scheme
> that state party leaders told Politico
> <http://sendy.berniesanders.com/l/DfrPBYJWWKIFXgZ763cGcMqQ/oGBNof3UBoDBjaNQNa6h0w/uYvdKjbV7632vO892kpilqumBw>
> has been used as a self-serving “money-laundering" conduit.
>
> Despite Clinton’s pledges to rebuild state parties, Politico found that
> less than 1 percent of the $61 million raised by the Victory Fund has
> stayed in the state parties’ coffers.
>
> “Secretary Clinton is looting funds meant for the state parties to skirt
> fundraising limits on her presidential campaign,” Weaver said. “We think
> the Clinton campaign should let the state parties keep their fair share of
> the cash.”
>
> Sanders’ and Clinton’s primary campaigns both raised about $26 million in
> April, but Politico documented how the Hillary Victory Fund, a supposedly
> joint fundraising committee, has been exploited to inflate her presidential
> primary campaign.
>
> “Secretary Clinton has exploited the rules in ways that let her
> high-dollar donors like Alice Walton of Wal-Mart fame and the actor George
> Clooney and his super-rich Hollywood friends skirt legal limits on campaign
> contributions,” Weaver added. “If Secretary Clinton can't raise the funds
> needed to run in a competitive primary without resorting to laundering, how
> will she compete against Donald Trump in a general election?”
>
> The Sanders campaign first raised questions about the arrangement in an
> April 18 letter from Brad Deutsch, the attorney for Sanders’ campaign, to
> U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chair of the DNC.
>
> "Hillary Clinton says that campaign finance reform is one of the most
> important issues facing our country but her campaign's use of the Victory
> Fund to essentially launder money proves otherwise," Weaver said. "You
> cannot exploit a broken campaign finance system one day and vow to get big
> money out of politics the next."
>
> Sanders last month raised money for three progressive Democratic
> candidates for the House of Representatives. Unlike the Hillary Victory
> Fund, every dollar went directly to helping the candidates. The senator has
> also raised significant sums for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign
> Committee.
>
> *###*
>
> Paid for by Bernie 2016
>
>
> PO Box 905 - Burlington, Vermont 05402, United States
>
>