Paxton Sues ActBlue Over Straw Donations

0:00Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton slapped Act Blue with a lawsuit, claiming the big democratic fundraising platform let straw donations slip through. Using untraceable gift cards, he says this breaks state consumer protection laws and opens the door to dark money messing with elections. Act Blue's processed over $16 billion for left-leaning candidates since 2004. This move follows a 2023 probe by Paxton's office, where investigators easily made donations with prepaid cards, despite the platform's promises to block them. Paxton argues these methods dodge ID checks, raising risks of foreign cash or fake donors flooding in. Paxton blasted Act Blue for lying to Congress and the public, vowing to hit them hard for deceptive practices and protect fair elections. Meanwhile, Act Blue called it a straight-up political stun, aimed at distracting from Paxton's own legal headaches right before his center runoff. State officials point to fresh internal reports showing Act Blue security isn't consistent, creating

1:01big holes for shady contributions. Paxton's pushing for a permanent injunction to shut that down in Texas plus civil penalties topping $1 million, including attorney fees. As digital fundraising faces more heat, this battle could tighten rules across the board and force platforms to step up their game before the next big. Votes hit. That's your update from Dallas News Today, powered by AI.