Bernie Sanders’ campaign fired off a letter to the Democratic National Committee questioning “serious apparent violations” of campaign finance laws by Hillary Clinton, calling into question to the joint fundraising deal between her campaign and the DNC.
Over the course of the Democratic primary, the Clinton campaign has held numerous high-dollar fundraisers bringing in individual donations as high as $353,400 to the Hillary Victory Fund, a number over 130 times the $2,700 limit that applies to individual campaign contributions.
“Now that we know this activity as not only continued but grown to staggering magnitudes, it can no longer be ignored,” Sanders campaign lawyer Brad C. Deustch wrote in the letter to DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz on Monday afternoon.
The Clinton campaign has been able to accept such donations due to their joint fundraising deal with the DNC, DSCC and state Democratic parties, but the Sanders campaign countered that such contributions “appear only to benefit HFA by generating low-dollar contributions that flow only to HFA, rather to the DNC or any of the participating state party committees.”
Sanders’ team also noted that according to the Clinton campaign’s latest FEC report, 80 percent of the money raised by the Hillary Victory Fund, $25 million, went directly towards helping the Clinton campaign and was not shared with state or national parties.
Sanders’ call for investigation of the Hillary Victory Fund comes just days after the Clinton campaign held a high -dollar fundraiser in California where guests contributed upwards of $350,000 for a ticket to sit around the table with Clinton and George Clooney. Sanders on the other hand, prides his campaign on grassroots donations averaging $27.
“While the use of joint fundraising agreements has existed for some time — it is unprecedented for the DNC to allow a joint committee to be exploited to the benefit of one candidate in the midst of a contested nominating contest,” Sanders campaign manager Jeff Weaver said in a statement.
The Clinton campaign angrily denied Sanders’ charges.
“The Sanders campaign’s false attacks have gotten out of hand. As Senator Sanders faces nearly insurmountable odds, he is resorting to baseless accusations of illegal actions and poisoning the well for Democratic candidates up and down the ticket,” Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said in a statement Monday afternoon. “It is shameful that Senator Sanders has resorted to irresponsible and misleading attacks just to raise money for himself.”
