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The campaign of incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy filed a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission this week against GOP primary challenger Congresswoman Julia Letlow and her campaign.
The complaint claims Letlow “knowingly and willfully” violated the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 by having a fundraiser “solicit illegal soft money for Hope in Action PAC” on her behalf, an allegation Team Letlow staunchly denied, calling it “desperate.”
The document further asks the FEC to investigate Letlow and several related committees as well as certain individuals for violations of federal campaign finance law.
The Cassidy campaign offered the following comment to The Tracker: “Time and again, Julia Letlow has shown a willingness to ignore federal law. Whether it’s campaign finance law or insider stock trading, Letlow acts as though the rules don’t apply to her. Louisiana voters deserve leaders who respect the law and uphold the highest standards of integrity.”
The complaint was filed by Kathleen Larkin, Cassidy’s campaign manager, who said she was leaked an email sent from a member of a fundraising team supporting Letlow, which contained the supposed violations involving the super PAC.
The email in question was “styled as a follow-up to the prospective donors’ telephone call with Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry,” according to the complaint, and stated that “both Jeff [Landry] and Julia [Letlow] are grateful” for the prospective donor’s time and consideration.
Letlow campaign spokesperson Katherine Thordahl said Gov. Landry asked the fundraiser “to help his friend Julia Letlow because he knows she will stand with President Trump and fight for Louisiana.”
The fundraiser does not work for and is not an agent of the Letlow campaign, said Thordahl.
Thordahl added, “Bill Cassidy is so desperate he’s now attacking Gov. Landry’s fundraiser—a private citizen not running for office. His campaign will do anything to distract from one simple fact: President Trump endorsed Julia Letlow. … Sen. Cassidy should spend less time filing frivolous complaints against private citizens and more time explaining to Louisiana Republicans why he turned his back on them and voted to impeach President Trump.”
Like most high-level politicos, Letlow’s efforts are being supported by a large fundraising network:
- Julia Letlow for Louisiana is her principal campaign committee.
- Hope in Action PAC is a hybrid political action committee, or super PAC, with both hard and soft money accounts.
- Letlow Victory Fund is a joint fundraising committee comprising Julia Letlow for Louisiana; Start Rising PAC, a leadership PAC sponsored by Congresswoman Letlow; and Hope in Action PAC
The core alleged violation involves Letlow, a federal candidate, or her agent, illegally soliciting so-called soft money—in this case unlimited super PAC contributions.
Hard money represents direct contributions to a candidate or party committee and they are strictly limited and regulated.
Soft money, on the other hand, is cash spent to influence elections without such limits and is often referred to as unlimited and given to groups like super PACs, although candidates cannot solicit those dollars directly.
Federal law strictly prohibits a federal candidate or anyone acting as the candidate’s agent from soliciting, receiving, directing or spending funds that are not subject to federal contribution limits.
Put another way, a professional fundraiser is not allowed to have these dual roles; they cannot solicit unlimited super PAC money while also acting on behalf of a federal candidate.
Cassidy’s campaign tied their newest allegation to Letlow’s failure to disclose more than 200 stock trades within the 45-day window mandated by the STOCK Act, alleging a pattern of behavior that “the rules don’t apply to her.”
Letlow blamed her investment firm for the STOCK Act violations, saying the firm added stocks and bonds to her portfolio without realizing that the transactions triggered reporting obligations for her. When she realized what happened, she alerted the House Ethics Committee to the oversight herself, according to a spokesperson.
