ActBlue contractors to face congressional grilling on Democrats' shady fundraising scheme



The House Oversight, Judiciary, and Administration Committees summoned ActBlue contractors to appear before Congress amid its investigation into Democrats' fundraising platform, according to a Tuesday report.

Letters obtained by the New York Post revealed that the committees requested two employees of Sift, an AI fraud detection platform, testify about ActBlue's allegedly relaxed fraud standards.

'This continued targeting of ActBlue and our partners by MAGA Republicans needs to be seen for what it is: Donald Trump's latest front in his campaign to stamp out all political, electoral and ideological opposition.'

The Sift employees reportedly worked with the fundraising platform and are aware of "critical" information about the "more lenient" criteria.

The Post quoted the letters written by Oversight Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.), Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), and Administration Chairman Bryan Steil (R-Wis.). It noted that the letters were addressed to Sift's director of customer success and senior customer success manager.

"The Committees are concerned that ActBlue has maintained poor anti-fraud practices that may have allowed bad actors to make fraudulent political donations, including from foreign sources," it read.

The Sift employees were requested to participate in transcribed interviews with the House Judiciary panel by May 13, the Post reported.

A Sift spokesperson told the news outlet, "ActBlue is a safe and secure fundraising platform, trusted by donors for more than 20 years – that's how we've become a vital part of American democracy."

"This continued targeting of ActBlue and our partners by MAGA Republicans needs to be seen for what it is: Donald Trump's latest front in his campaign to stamp out all political, electoral and ideological opposition," the spokesperson claimed.

Congress has been probing ActBlue for years over its alleged lenient standards allowing potential foreign donations.

The three committees released a joint report earlier this month that revealed the platform's "executives and staff are aware that both foreign and domestic fraudulent actors are exploiting the platform but do not take the threat seriously."

"In fact, they attempted to hide the changes to avoid sparking discussions about fraud on the platform. For example, ActBlue's training guide for new fraud-prevention employees instructed them to 'look for reasons to accept contributions,' rather than err on the side of flagging suspicious donations," the committees claimed.

Last week, President Donald Trump signed a memorandum directing the Department of Justice to open an investigation into "unlawful 'straw donor' and foreign contributions in American elections." The action cited the committees' findings on ActBlue.

Amid the ongoing probes, at least seven of the fundraising giant's top executives jumped ship in February.

Following the resignations, an ActBlue spokesperson told the New York Times, "Like many organizations, as we undergo some transition heading into this new election cycle, we are focused on ensuring we have a strong team in place."

"We greatly appreciate the contributions of our incredible team members and remain deeply committed to the success of our organization and our mission to enable grass-roots supporters to make their voices heard," the spokesperson stated.

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House GOP calls 'sanctuary' governors to face oversight grilling on public safety



House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) sent letters to several "sanctuary governors" on Thursday, inviting them to testify before lawmakers as part of the committee's ongoing probe into the public safety impact of sanctuary policies.

Comer requested Democratic Governors Kathy Hochul of New York, Tim Walz of Minnesota, and JB Pritzker of Illinois testify before the committee during a May 15 hearing.

'President Trump is preparing to take executive action to withhold federal funding from sanctuary states.'

The letters stated, "The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform is continuing to investigate sanctuary jurisdictions across the United States and their impact on public safety and the effectiveness of federal efforts to enforce the immigration laws of the United States."

"Sanctuary jurisdictions and their obstructionist policies hinder the ability of federal law enforcement officers to effectuate safe arrests and remove dangerous criminals from American communities," it continued. "This threatens Americans' safety."

Comer requested several documents from the state leaders, including all materials and communications related to sanctuary policies.

The committee previously heard testimony in March from Democratic mayors of sanctuary cities, including Eric Adams of New York, Michelle Wu of Boston, Brandon Johnson of Chicago, and Mike Johnston of Denver.

Comer stated Thursday, "Harboring aliens is a federal crime. Sanctuary policies championed by these governors jeopardize the safety of Americans and defy U.S. immigration laws."

"President Trump is preparing to take executive action to withhold federal funding from sanctuary states," he added. "Working alongside President Trump, Congress must ensure federal immigration law is enforced and that criminal aliens are swiftly removed from our communities."

Hochul indicated that she would be willing to testify, Politico reported.

She told reporters on Thursday, "We just received notification of their interest in my opinion on state laws, which I'm happy to share with them."

"I told people like Tom Homan that I will continue doing what our practice has been from the beginning, which is to cooperate with ICE when they have a warrant or they have evidence that there's a person who's committed a serious crime," Hochul said.

According to Alex Gough, a spokesperson for Pritzker, the governor is still reviewing Comer's request for documents. He has not yet determined whether he will testify.

Gough stated, "Let's call this what this is: another partisan dog and pony show."

Teddy Tschann, a spokesperson for Walz, said, "Governor Walz is happy to work with Congress, but since Minnesota is not a sanctuary state, one can't help but wonder if this is, perhaps, politically motivated."

Meanwhile, acting U.S. District Attorney for New Jersey Alina Habba announced that she is launching her own investigation into Governor Phil Murphy (D) and state attorney General Matt Platkin over New Jersey’s order prohibiting local police from cooperating with federal immigration agents.

"That will no longer stand. [U.S. Attorney General] Pam Bondi has made it clear and so has our president that we are to take all criminals, violent criminals and criminals out of this country and to completely enforce federal law," Habba told Fox News' Sean Hannity on Thursday.

"And anybody who does get ... in the way of what we are doing — which is not political, it is simply against crime — will be charged in the state of New Jersey for obstruction, for concealment," Habba continued. "And I will come after hard."

Murphy's office and Platkin's office declined a request for comment from ABC News.

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Fed government spent eye-popping sums on furniture while many worked remotely, needed repairs stalled



The House Oversight Committee's subcommittee Delivering on Government Efficiency held a hearing on Tuesday examining how to reduce the amount of taxpayer funds going toward the "federal real estate portfolio."

The subcommittee, led by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), heard testimony from John Hart, the chief executive officer with Open the Books, and David Marroni, the acting director for the Government Accountability Office's Physical Infrastructure team.

'GAO found that these needs had more than doubled, from $170 billion to $370 billion between fiscal year 2017 and 2024.'

Hart revealed bombshell information in his opening statement pulled from an Open the Books investigation that found the federal government splurged $4.6 billion on furniture since fiscal year 2021. He noted that the amount was enough to purchase a "modest $500 kitchen table" for 9.2 million American families.

Hart shared more shocking figures, stating that the Department of State spent $1.4 million on artwork at embassies, including $200,000 on two paintings from "a contemporary abstract artist."

The U.S. Islamabad embassy spent $120,000 on 40 "high-end leather recliners," Hart told lawmakers.

"During the peak years of the COVID emergency, from 2020 to 2022, agencies spent $3.3 billion on furniture as work migrated to Zoom," Hart continued. "The Department of Transportation was among those least-attended agencies with 9% occupancy but still spent $55 million on furniture. The Department of Justice was among the agencies with an average of 35% attendance yet still managed to spend $408 million on furniture."

He noted that the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency purchased "high-end Herman Miller furniture" for $250,000, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission managed to dish out $700,000 to furnish one conference room.

While the federal government was apparently throwing taxpayer cash at furniture upgrades, it failed to address the $370 billion in needed "fixes" and "long-term disrepair" at some facilities, Hart explained.

The massive figures shared by Hart seemed especially egregious when considering a 2024 GAO audit revealed that "more than half of federal employees were either teleworking regularly or fully remote." Additionally, the report stated that 17 of the 24 surveyed federal agencies utilized 25% or less of their headquarters facilities.

The GAO submitted testimony to the subcommittee, highlighting the federal government's "underused buildings," which it noted have cost taxpayers "millions of dollars."

"The federal government's annual maintenance and operating costs for its 277,000 buildings were about $10.3 billion in fiscal year 2023," it read. "Further, federal agencies have deferred maintenance and repairs on many buildings, creating a backlog. GAO found that these needs had more than doubled, from $170 billion to $370 billion between fiscal year 2017 and 2024."

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Democratic mayors called to testify as House committee launches investigation into sanctuary cities



The House Oversight and Government Reform Committee announced Monday that it is launching an investigation into sanctuary jurisdictions and their impact on public safety and federal immigration enforcement.

Sanctuary policies prohibit local officials from cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

'Misguided and obstructionist policies.'

A press release from Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) explained that the committee sent letters to mayors of several sanctuary cities: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu (D), Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (D), Denver Mayor Mike Johnston (D), and New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D).

The mayors were requested to turn over “documents and communications related to their cities’ sanctuary policies” and asked to testify before the committee during a hearing scheduled for February 11.

The committee’s press release noted that there are roughly “12 states and hundreds of cities and counties with sanctuary laws or policies across the country” that are “shielding removable aliens, especially criminals, from federal law enforcement.” It stated that the cities’ leaders “refuse to fully cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.”

In the letters to the mayors, the committee explained that it decided to specifically investigate those four sanctuary cities because they “stand out in their abject failure to comply with federal law,” adding that the cities’ citizens have “suffered” as a result.

“Sanctuary jurisdictions and their misguided and obstructionist policies hinder the ability of federal law enforcement officers to effectuate safe arrests and remove dangerous criminals from American communities, making Americans less safe,” Comer stated.

“On the first day of his second term, President Donald Trump took decisive actions to restore the rule of law with respect to immigration enforcement,” he continued. “In addition to the efforts of the Trump Administration to ensure federal immigration enforcement can proceed unimpeded, Congress must determine whether further legislation is necessary to enhance border security and public safety. It is imperative that federal immigration law is enforced and that criminal aliens are swiftly removed from our communities.”

A spokesperson for Wu’s office released a statement in response to the House committee’s letter.

“We are proud that Boston is the safest major city in the United States. We have received the letter and are reviewing it,” the statement read.

Boston City Councilor Ed Flynn told WCVB, “When someone commits a crime, regardless of immigration status, we can’t stand in the way of justice for a survivor of crime or respect for the rule of law and society.”

“A respectful and cooperative working relationship between Boston Police and federal authorities, including ICE, is critical. We can’t play politics with the security and safety of residents,” Flynn added.

A spokesperson for Adams’ office told Fox News Digital, “Mayor Adams has made clear that New York City is committed to working with our federal partners to fix our broken immigration system and focus on the small number of people who are entering our localities and committing violent crimes.”

“We will review the letter and respond accordingly,” the spokesperson said.

A representative for Denver Mayor Johnston said Monday night, “The most helpful thing congressional Republicans could do right now is fix our broken immigration system. While they work on that, we will focus on running the cities that manage the consequences of their failure to act.”

Chicago Mayor Johnson’s office did not respond to a request for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Last week, acting Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove issued a three-page memo signaling a crackdown on sanctuary cities. The correspondence directed the Department of Justice’s prosecutors to open investigations into state and local leaders who obstruct the Trump administration’s deportation plans.

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