“The criminal is inside our house!” Pass the “Stop Ballroom Bribery Act!”

This is a “guardrail” bill. Whether it passes or not, make sure your own legislators know we want them at the front lines to pass it!

(https://youtu.be/Nbf6BJzpk1E)

Trump says his monstrous ballroom is being “gifted” to us. But like a puppy, this “gift” will incur major expenses for us in the future. Maintenance and staffing costs will be passed on to us taxpayers, while he’ll use it for free to to entertain his ultra-wealthy friends in dictator-chic comfort.

But what our venal president and his supporters have overlooked is that it’s actually illegal for it to be funded by private donors. Constitutional attorney Bruce Fein stated that “private money to build a White House ballroom flagrantly violates the Anti-Deficiency Act, which safeguards the congressional power of the purse by prohibiting the president from using non-appropriated funds donated by private parties for a government purpose indistinguishable from plutocracy. Without enforcement of the Anti-Deficiency Act, the congressional power of the purse is a scarecrow in the ‘golden age’ of billionaires eager to curry favor with the government in exchange for multi-million-dollar regulatory or tax favors.” Yeah, that!

And now, there’s a big lawsuit by a preservation group, for which we will also have to pay to defend Trump’s indefensible actions.

Call/email your House Representative!

SPANK – Minimal call and email script: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want [Congressman/woman _____] to COSPONSOR Rep. Garcia’s Stop Ballroom Bribery Act (H.R.6085).

More script if you want it: We all know this ballroom project, which violates the Anti-Deficiency Act, is a ruse to allow entities involved in either litigation or seeking contracts with the federal government to funnel money to Trump. This bill restricts donations from conflicted donors, foreign entities, bans lobbying efforts afterwards, and keeps cash from finding its way to our greedy, greedy, greedy president.

And now that donations are at record levels for the Trump-controlled Kennedy Center, despite dropping attendance, I want [him/her] to support Sen. Whitehouse’s investigation into what is now a “a slush fund and private club for Trump’s friends and political allies,” where a $2 million “charitable” donation buys a seat next to Trump. Thank you!

Current cosponsors: ZERO! Get Julia Brownley and Salud Carbajal to sign on!

  • Rep. Julia Brownley: email, (CA-26): DC (202) 225-5811, Oxnard (805) 379-1779, T.O. (805) 379-1779
  • OR Rep. Salud Carbajal: email.(CA-24): DC (202) 225-3601, SB & Ventura: (805) 730-1710 SLO (805) 546-8348
  • Who is my representative/senator?: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

Call/email your senators to thank and spank!

SPANK – Minimal script for SENATOR PADILLA: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want Senator Padilla to COSPONSOR Senator Warren’s Stop Ballroom Bribery Act (S.3191). We all know this ballroom project, which violates the Anti-Deficiency Act, is a ruse to allow entities involved either in litigation or seeking contracts with the federal government to funnel money to Trump. This bill restricts donations from conflicted donors, foreign entities, bans lobbying efforts afterwards, and keeps cash from finding its way to our greedy, greedy, greedy president.

More script if you want it: And now that donations are at record levels for the Trump-controlled Kennedy Center, despite dropping attendance, I want [him/her] to support Sen. Whitehouse’s investigation into what is now a “a slush fund and private club for Trump’s friends and political allies,” where a $2 million “charitable” donation buys a seat next to Trump. Thank you!

________________________________________________________

THANK – Minimal script for SENATOR SCHIFF: I’m calling from [zip code] and I want to THANK Senator Schiff for cosponsoring Senator Warren’s Stop Ballroom Bribery Act (S. 3191).

And now that donations are at record levels for the Trump-controlled Kennedy Center, despite dropping attendance, I want [him/her] to also support Sen. Whitehouse’s investigation into what is now a “a slush fund and private club for Trump’s friends and political allies,” where a $2 million “charitable” donation buys a seat next to Trump. Thank you!

________________________________________________________

Cosponsor update: Adam Schiff (Yes, he is a cosponsor), Padilla (No, he is NOT!)

Yes, it’s important to THANK our legislators when they do the right thing, even if you think Democratic ones should be doing it automatically!

  • Senator Adam Schiff: email, DC (202) 224-3121, Burbank (818) 303-3841, SF (415) 393-0707, SD (619) 231-9712, Fresno (559) 485-7430
  • AND Senator Padilla: email, DC (202) 224-3553, LA (310) 231-4494, SAC (916) 448-2787, Fresno (559) 497-5109, SF (415) 981-9369, SD (619) 239-3884
  • Who is my representative/senator?: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials

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Additional resources

(https://youtu.be/FGs4jQQiqd4)

  • (Elizabeth Warren) Warren, Garcia Introduce New Bill to Stop Apparent Bribery Involving Trump Ballroom Donations
    • The Stop Ballroom Bribery Act would:
    • Impose pre-donation restrictions. A donation could only be used for applicable projects if the Senate-confirmed directors of the National Park Service (NPS) and Office of Government Ethics (OGE) determine that the donation complies with key restrictions, including:
      • Ban donations from entities and individuals that present a conflict of interest.
      • Make clear that donations cannot be conditioned on receipt of benefits from the federal government, be coerced, or appear to influence government action.
      • Ban the President, VP, and their families and staff from soliciting donations.
      • Require Congress to approve any foreign government donations.
    • Impose post-donation restrictions, including:
      • Prohibit displaying donors’ names and logos as recognition of the donation.
      • Impose a two-year cooling-off period before a donor to a covered project can lobby the federal government.
      • Prohibit converting leftover donated funds to anyone’s personal use or using leftover funds to benefit the President, VP, or their family or staff.
    • Require transparency, including:
      • Donors must disclose any meetings with the federal government (including the President and VP and their spouses, children, and agents working on their behalf) that occur within one year of the donation.
      • NPS must publish on a quarterly basis details of all donations to covered projects (amount, donor name, meetings between the donor and federal government, etc.).
      • Donations cannot be made anonymously or in someone else’s name.
    • Enable enforcement, including:
      • Permit judicial review of the NPS-OGE decision that a donation is permissible.
      • Allow state attorneys general and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to seek civil penalties and disgorgement of the donation, and the DOJ to seek criminal penalties.
    • Coverage
      • The bill would cover the construction, improvement, or other alteration of property on the White House grounds, the VP’s residence, or other public property that the President or VP regularly use (such as Camp David or Air Force One); events hosted at such locations; and monuments or other structures that honor a living President or VP.
    • Endorsements
      • The bill is endorsed by Public Citizen, Democracy Defenders Action, People For the American Way, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), Common Cause, and Transparency International U.S..

(Guardian) “The administration recently revealed a list of companies that have donated to Donald Trump’s ballroom development – now coming in with a $300m price tag. This included tech giants such as Apple, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Google; defense contractors Booz Allen Hamilton, Lockheed Martin and Palantir; and telecommunications giants T-Mobile and Comcast.

Last month, the president hosted a dinner for company representatives and billionaire individuals who made significant contributions to the renovation. Many of the companies donating are in business with the administration already, and rely on significant government contracts, or would benefit from favourable legal treatment. Ethics experts have warned that their donations could afford them outsized influence or preferential treatment from the White House.

“The highest office in the land should never be for sale, nor should it ever appear to be,” said Virginia Canter, chief counsel and director for ethics and anticorruption at Democracy Defenders Action in a statement.

“Americans shouldn’t have to wonder whether President Trump is building a ballroom to facilitate a pay-to-play scheme for political favors. My new bill will put an end to what looks like bribery in plain sight,” Warren said of the bicameral legislation earlier this week.

Meanwhile, Garcia said that it’s “outrageous” that the “people’s house could be funded by shady figures, corrupt money and bad actors”. He added that the Stop Ballroom Bribery Act would “ensure we can hold any administration accountable for blatant corruption”.

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