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THE TALK SHOW AMERICAN: Democrat Party, Jesse Jackson Violated Election Laws

Friday, May 27, 2005

Democrat Party, Jesse Jackson Violated Election Laws

The Federal Election Commission is fining both the Democratic Party and two of Jesse Jackson's groups for campaign finance violations dating back to the 2000 presidential campaign.

Jackson's Rainbow/PUSH Coaltion and Citizenship Education Fund will pay a fine of $100,000, and so will the Democratic National Committee -- for orchestrating a partisan voter registration drive.

The fines stem from a September 2000 agreement in which the DNC paid Jackson's groups $450,000 to offset the costs of a get-out-the-vote and voter registration drive intended to get more Democrats to the polls, the FEC said.

The American Conservative Union, which filed the complaint against the DNC and Jackson's groups four years ago, called the FEC ruling a "real vindication" for Republicans and conservatives.

"The word is now out -- crooked election practices that have become the standard of the Left will not be tolerated," said ACU Chairman David Keene in a statement on the group's website.

According to the ACU, Jackson and his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition orchestrated a massive voter registration drive before the 2000 election.

Election law says such efforts must be strictly nonpartisan, but the Rainbow/PUSH campaign was closely coordinated with the DNC and targeted Democrats, ACU said. In addition to planning and coordinating campaign efforts, the DNC reimbursed Jackson's group for its work.

The ACU said it filed suit in 2001 "after the public evidence of the abuse became too visible to ignore."

Another Jackson-watcher, the National Legal and Policy Center, said FEC ruling confirms that Jackson's Citizenship Education Fund (CEF) - his largest nonprofit group - operates outside of its nonprofit tax status.

"The tax-exempt purpose of CEF is to conduct nonpartisan voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns," said Peter Flaherty, president of the National Legal and Policy Center.

"Now that the FEC has officially determined that CEF has engaged in partisan activities, it is confirmation that CEF is in violation of its tax-exempt status. The Internal Revenue Service should revoke CEF's tax-exempt status without further delay."

In 2001, the National Legal and Policy Center filed a formal IRS complaint against CEF.

The complaint alleges that Jackson uses the Citizenship Education Fund as a vehicle to "shake down" corporate America; that Jackson appears to have used the tax-exempt group to enrich himself and those close to him; and that CEF, among other omissions, failed to disclose on its tax return payments to Jackson's mistress, Karin Stanford.

NLPC said Jackson responded to the complaint "with a furious attack on NLPC," but he also announced that CEF's tax return would be amended to reflect the payments to Stanford.

Said Flaherty, "Our previous allegations should have been enough to result in the revocation of CEF's tax-exempt status. The FEC's finding that CEF is partisan should settle the issue once and for all.

"We plan to amend our complaint with this new information."

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