At issue is a federal statute stipulating that foreign nationals cannot contribute to political campaigns. That law, though, doesn’t just bar cash donations.
“The statute’s written very, very broadly,” said Bob Bauer, a former White House counsel under Barack Obama who now teaches at New York University Law School. “It applies to promises of support — promises express or implied. It applies to independent expenditures, meaning those with express advocacy. It applies to any expenditure, meaning those that may not be express advocacy expenditures but are for the purpose of influencing the federal election. It applies to disbursements. It is extremely broad.”
The law was first passed in 1966. It was strengthened in 1974 and, under the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, in 2002. It bars any contribution, even a small-donor contribution, from a noncitizen and puts strict limits on the involvement of foreign individuals or organizations. Further, and importantly, the law prohibits any American from aiding any of the above efforts. We noted last week that “collusion” can be another word for “conspiracy,” and that those aiding a Russian effort to provide illegal assistance or soliciting that assistance could be held criminally liable.
