Campaign finance watchdog group Campaign Legal Center has filed an FEC complaint regarding the illegal activity
Brad Todd, the man at the center of the scandal, is main consultant to Missouri Senate candidate Josh Hawley
Following Politico’s report that the National Rifle Association (NRA) may have violated federal law by using a shell company to illegally coordinate with four different Senate campaigns during past cycles, End Citizens United (ECU) is supporting a call by the Campaign Legal Center (CLC) for an investigation. The CLC filed a complaint with the FEC earlier this week.
The new report spells trouble for Senate candidate Josh Hawley whose top political consultant Brad Todd ran the firm at the center of the scandal. According to Politico, OnMessage, Todd’s GOP consulting firm, created the shell company Starboard to help the NRA illegally coordinate with battleground Senate races. CLC estimates that the NRA may have made millions in illegal in-kind contributions and been able to fundraise well past contribution limits.
While Hawley has been eager to tout his support for ethics reform, he has a long history of exploiting campaign finance laws for his political ambition. In his campaign for attorney general, the Stoddard County Prosecuting Attorney filed an ethics complaint against Hawley for using his two dark money non-profits as a means to run a shadow campaign, without declaring his candidacy to evade campaign finance limits or transparency. More recently, Hawley came under fire for failing to investigate former Governor Eric Greitens’ dark money group, A New Missouri.
“There is a clear pattern of behavior surrounding Josh Hawley and and the consultants running his show,” said Tiffany Muller, president of End Citizens United. “The FEC should investigate this matter because Americans have a right to know when campaigns and political insiders like Hawley’s consultants are breaking the rules to rig the system and more so, Missourians deserve to hear from Josh Hawley to know if his campaign is engaging in these type of tactics.”