Congressman Valadao is firmly holding down the light switch on dark money in politics.
Last week, Valadao voted to prevent rules that would require federal contractors and corporations to disclose their political contributions. His vote comes as no surprise since he readily accepts checks from big money backers like the Koch brothers.
“Congressman Valadao is keeping Central Valley voters in the dark on dark money,” said Barb Solish of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. “Central Valley residents deserve transparency, not a Congressman who wants to camouflage money in politics.”
Background
Valadao Voted For Bill That Would Prevent Action To Require Disclosure Of Dark Money. On Wednesday June 17, 2015 the Appropriations Committee voted along party lines on the FY 2016 Financial Services Appropriations bill, which included provisions to prevent “executive branch efforts to mandate campaign finance disclosure by federal contractors and other corporations. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said in response to the language approved by the Appropriations committee. “We believe Republicans should be taking steps to fix the campaign finance system, not trying to protect their ability to accept dark money.” Dark money refers to funds spent on elections by nonprofit organizations that do not disclose their donors. The bill passed out of the Appropriations Committee by a vote of 30 to 20 with no Democrats voting for the bill. [House Appropriations Committee, 6/17/15; Washington Post, 6/25/15]
48 Percent Of Valadao’s Political Contributions Came From PACs And Special Interest Groups. [Center for Responsive Politics, accessed 6/29/15]
Valadao’s Third Largest Contributor Is Koch Industries. [Center for Responsive Politics, accessed 6/29/15]