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Trevor Potter Profile picture
@thetrevorpotter
Oct 9, 2020 • 8 tweets • 2 min read • Read on X
The @nytimes reported today that Donald Trump may have illegally financed his 2016 campaign with a secret loan that potentially exceeded legal limits. The report is the latest in a Times series examining Trump's tax returns. Thread below. (1/8)
nytimes.com/interactive/20…
The @nytimes reports that in September 2016, at the height of the presidential campaign, Trump quietly took out a $30 million bank loan in the name of an LLC that he jointly owns with billionaire developer Phil Ruffin, with Trump Tower Las Vegas as collateral. (2/8)
Tax records show the LLC paid Trump over $21 million in 2016 & claimed a tax deduction on the payments.

6 weeks after obtaining the loan, Trump gave $10 million to his campaign.

Federal law requires that candidates disclose bank loans used in connection w/ their campaign. (3/8)
If Trump secretly financed his 2016 campaign using an undisclosed bank loan backed by a billionaire developer, then voters have been illegally deprived of important information about the true sources of Trump's financial support. (4/8)
Additionally, if the LLC took a tax deduction for the payments to Trump, it would mean that Trump secretly relied on taxpayers to help subsidize his 2016 campaign. (5/8)
Disclosure to voters in 2016 would have been important, since Trump’s claim that he was self-financing his campaign was central to his message.

The @nytimes also reports Phil Ruffin guaranteed the loan. Under campaign finance law, such a guarantee is treated as a...(6/8)
...contribution to the candidate, subject to legal limits and reporting requirements. If the loan was used in connection with Trump’s campaign, then Ruffin would have made an illegal contribution to the Trump campaign, potentially valued as high as $30 million. (7/8)
Trump would have violated the law by accepting an excess contribution from Ruffin in the form of a loan guarantee and failing to report it. (8/8)

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More from @thetrevorpotter

Trevor Potter Profile picture
Mar 1, 2023
Thank you @amyklobuchar, @LindseyGrahamSC & @MarkWarner for introducing the bipartisan “Honest Ads Act.” This is commonsense legislation that will help #voters make informed choices by revealing the true sources of spending behind online ads. (1/) klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.c…
A man I used to call “boss,” Senator John McCain, was an original co-sponsor of the “Honest Ads Act” when it was first introduced in 2017. He recognized the need to update our laws to account for the proliferation of political ads in the online world. (2/) klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.c…
Six years after the “Honest Ads Act” was first introduced online ad spending has increased dramatically, but our regulations regarding these ads remain woefully out of date, to the detriment of voters and our #democracy. (3/) klobuchar.senate.gov/public/index.c…
Read 4 tweets
Trevor Potter Profile picture
Nov 21, 2022
Post-midterm reflections THREAD: I am #thankful for every voter who looked at the candidates on their ballot and chose those who respect our electoral process over those who do not, especially candidates running for important election-related offices such as Secretary of State.
I give thanks for the thousands of volunteers and election officials who worked to ensure that #voting and vote counting proceeded efficiently and fairly. #midterms2022 #VotingRights
I am also thankful for the numerous pro-democracy groups (including @CampaignLegal!) who guarded vigilantly against efforts to disenfranchise #voters, and responded when necessary, including with legal challenges. #midterms2022
Read 7 tweets
Trevor Potter Profile picture
Nov 10, 2022
THANK YOU election officials/poll workers/volunteers who worked & continue to work to ensure that #Midterms2022 are carried out successfully. Nationally this election has been free of major issues, and Americans should feel confident about the voting/vote counting process. Image
While many are focused on the horse race for control of #Congress it is worth noting that #Midterms2022 produced a number of pro-democracy gains through ballot initiatives, many of which received strong majority support. #DemocracyWins
#Arizona: The “Voters Right to Know Act” (Prop. 211) brings transparency to elections by requiring election spenders to disclose the original sources of their funding. Thank you @TerryGoddardAZ for leading on this effort. thehill.com/homenews/campa…
Read 6 tweets
Trevor Potter Profile picture
Nov 8, 2022
Election Day is the heart of our #democracy. The ability to choose our elected officials should never be taken for granted. I encourage all eligible voters to make their voices heard, and if you encounter any problems, call or text 866-OUR-VOTE. #ElectionDay2022 Image
I encourage all Americans, especially those running for office, to exercise patience after election day. This is expected to be a high-turnout election with many close races, and a number of states will not start counting mail-in ballots until election day. Image
Our democracy depends in part on the adherence to basic norms, by politicians and voters alike, including the acceptance of election outcomes. False information about our elections has corroded trust among far too many. #ElectionDay2022 Image
Read 4 tweets
Trevor Potter Profile picture
Sep 20, 2022
On #NationalVoterRegistrationDay I want to commend everyone who is working to get fellow citizens registered, in particular, the work being done to restore voting rights to people with past felony convictions, including @GicolaLane, @BlairBowie and other @CampaignLegal staff. Image
A past felony conviction should never serve as grounds for permanently banning citizens from the voting booth. Today nearly 17m people can vote, or have their rights restored, but are effectively disenfranchised. #NationalVoterRegistrationDay LEARN MORE: campaignlegal.org/cases-actions/…
Since 2018 @CampaignLegal has provided direct rights restoration services to 1000s of individuals and trained 1000s of community leaders. Tens of 1000s have used our online toolkit, RestoreYourVote.org. #NationalVoterRegistrationDay
Read 4 tweets
Trevor Potter Profile picture
Mar 10, 2022
There are 3 anti-democracy “riders” buried in the “must pass” omnibus funding bill before Congress right now that are terrible news — that would damage political transparency and violate voters' right to know who is spending big money to influence our government. 🧵 1/5
The first would stop @SECGov from finalizing a rule requiring corporations to disclose their political spending to shareholders and the public. The public petition for this rulemaking at the SEC has received 1.2 million public comments — the most in the agency’s history. 2/5
The second would stop @IRSnews from creating clear definitions for nonprofit engagement in politics. Without clear guidance defining what nonprofits can and cannot do in elections, groups wanting to influence our elections w/secret money can abuse the system w/o consequences. 3/5
Read 5 tweets

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