Tomorrow, oral arguments are set to begin at the D.C. Circuit Court in End Citizens United’s (ECU) lawsuit against the Federal Election Commission (FEC). The lawsuit argues that the Commission wrongfully dismissed ECU’s complaint against Senator Rick Scott and New Republican PAC for breaking campaign finance law.
The original complaint relates to a 2018 violation when Rick Scott, who was running for U.S. Senate, coordinated with New Republican PAC, a super PAC that spent over $29 million to support his election during the 2018 cycle.
“The FEC’s refusal to enforce the law and allow politicians like Senator Rick Scott to blatantly break the rules speaks to the dysfunction of the FEC–the agency tasked with guarding against the corruption of our democracy,” said ECU President Tiffany Muller. “The FEC’s own counsel concluded that Rick Scott broke the law and recommended an investigation, yet they proceeded to dismiss the complaint due to gridlock and a broken process. Their refusal to do their job signals to politicians that they won’t be held accountable for breaking the law.”
At the heart of the complaint is the fact that Scott, who served as chairman of the super PAC from May 2017 until at least the end of that year and employed several close allies, raised significant funds for the group before launching his bid for Senate in April 2018. During that time, the group’s stated purpose was to support President Trump. On the day of Scott’s declaration, New Republican PAC declared in a press release that it was now “focused on the election of Rick Scott” and spent significantly to support his election.
Despite the FEC’s general counsel concluding there was reason to believe Scott broke the law and recommending further investigation, the FEC dismissed the complaint, split 3-3 in a deadlock along party lines.
Coverage of ECU’s complaints and lawsuits pertaining to Rick Scott and the FEC:
-
The Hill: Watchdog sues FEC for closing investigation into Rick Scott, allied super PAC
-
South Florida Sentinel Editorial: Epic failures at FEC allow Sen. Rick Scott to exploit campaign laws
-
Salon: Florida Gov. Rick Scott, now a Senate candidate, accused of flouting campaign finance law
-
Florida Politics: FEC complaint charges Rick Scott with ‘soft money’ fundraising before Senate campaign launch
-
Tampa Bay Times: Federal complaint alleges Rick Scott’s PAC illegally skirted fundraising restrictions
-
Tampa Bay Times: Federal complaint alleges Rick Scott illegally benefited from anti-Bill Nelson Super PAC ads
Timeline:
-
2017 and 2018: In violation of the federal law, Rick Scott fails to timely file a statement of candidacy and disclosure report; and New Republican PAC solicited, received, and spent soft money in connection with a federal election while controlled by Scott.
-
April 2018: ECU files first FEC complaint against Scott and New Republican PAC.
-
September 2018: ECU files a second FEC complaint against Scott’s campaign and New Republican PAC.
-
December 2020: FEC Office of General Counsel finds reason to believe Scott and New Republican PAC broke the law and recommended an investigation.
-
May 2021: Republican FEC commissioners vote NO on moving forward with investigation.
-
August 2021: ECU files a lawsuit against the FEC to challenge the wrongful dismissal.
-
October 2021: Democratic FEC commissioners release a statement on the litigation contesting the argument that the FEC dismissed the matter on prosecutorial discretion grounds.
-
November 2021: District court grants New Republican PAC’s motion to intervene in the litigation.
-
September 2022: District court judge dismisses the case based on prosecutorial discretion, finding FEC’s decision to dismiss coordination claims as reasonable.
-
October 2022: ECU appeals to the circuit court.
###