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Allred Votes to Strengthen Ethics and Campaign Finance Laws

December 9, 2021

Washington, D.C. – Congressman Colin Allred (TX-32), a former voting rights attorney, today voted for the Protecting Our Democracy Act to shore up our democracy, strengthen checks and balances, bolster transparency and protect against foreign election interference. Allred is a cosponsor of the legislation.

“The previous President proved that Congress must assert itself and act as a check on any abuses or ethical violations within the Executive Branch, and I will always do all I can to protect our democracy and ensure it works for North Texans,” said Allred. “In 2018, North Texans saw firsthand foreign attempts to influence our elections when a dark money group fueled by illegal foreign money was used to run false attacks against me. From foreign interference to the Big Lie, we’ve seen how fragile our democracy is and I was proud to vote to strengthen our ethics and campaign finance rules today.” 

Read a section-by-section summary of the bill here.

 

The Protecting Our Democracy Act will:

Protect Our Elections

  • Requires that political committees report to the FBI and the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) certain foreign contacts and that the FBI report to Congress any reporting received.
  • Prevents foreign interference in our elections by adding information sought or obtained for political advantage to the definition of a “thing of value” in the Federal Election Campaign Act, enhances criminal penalties for violations and requires campaigns to certify that they understand the prohibition.

Restore Our System of Checks and Balances, Strengthen Accountability, and Transparency

  • Strengthens Congress’ ability to enforce subpoenas and expedites the judicial process for congressional subpoena enforcement actions.
  • Protects the independence of Inspectors General.
  • Makes changes with respect to the appointment, tenure, and qualifications of acting officials of executive agencies and limits their tenure to no more than 120 days.
  • Strengthens Hatch Act enforcement and penalties including by increasing the maximum fine for Hatch Act violations by senior political appointees to $50,000.
  • Promotes orderly presidential transitions by requiring that if the Administrator of General Services does not ascertain a winner in a presidential election within 5 days of the election, each eligible presidential candidate and vice-presidential candidate shall be treated as the winner, until an ascertainment is made, or a winner is certified by Congress.

Prevent Presidential Abuses

  • Prevents abuse of the pardon power by requiring the Department of Justice to provide materials to Congress concerning any self-serving presidential pardon and prohibits self-pardons by the president.
  • Suspends the statute of limitations for any federal offense committed by a sitting president or vice president, whether it was committed before or during their terms in office.
  • Codifies the Constitution’s Foreign and Domestic Emoluments Clauses by prohibiting federal officials from accepting foreign emoluments without Congress’s consent and prohibiting the President from accepting domestic emoluments and enhancing enforcement mechanisms for Congress and for entities within the Executive Branch. 

 

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