Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton fired back at the ActBlue Democratic donation organization after it filed a lawsuit Friday accusing him of violating the Constitution.
Paxton filed a lawsuit last month accusing ActBlue of illegally accepting donations forbidden by campaign laws. The portal has faced similar allegations from Republicans for years.
‘It is retaliation against constitutionally protected political speech and association, and it is exactly what the First Amendment forbids.’
The ActBlue lawsuit accused Paxton of violating the organization’s First and Fourteenth Amendment rights of the Constitution.
“ActBlue is trying to take me down,” Paxton responded on social media. “I sued the fundraising platform for deceiving Americans by lying about its donation processes that allow fraudulent and foreign donations. I will hold those who break the law accountable.”
ActBlue’s chief legal officer, Lawrence Oliver, made the case against Paxton.
“Ken Paxton has spent more than two years using the power of his office to investigate, harass, and sue ActBlue,” Oliver wrote in a statement.
“The timing of Paxton fighting for his political life in his run for a U.S. Senate seat and his use of the Attorney General’s office to attack ActBlue should not be lost on anyone. He is wasting taxpayer dollars to benefit his political ambitions,” he added.
“That is not law enforcement,” Oliver concluded. “It is retaliation against constitutionally protected political speech and association, and it is exactly what the First Amendment forbids.”
Among the claims made against Paxton was that his investigators tried to use an American Express gift card on ActBlue in an attempt to show the ease with which illegal donations could be made. Although they failed three times, ActBlue alleges that Paxton hid these facts from the Texas court.
RELATED: Texas AG Paxton accuses Democrat donation portal ActBlue of illegally funneling foreign money into US campaigns
ActBlue also reposted a message from a Democratic activist against Republicans on social media.
“Let’s be clear about something: the only reason Republicans are targeting ActBlue is that they want to destroy the Democratic Party’s ability to raise money from small-dollar donors,” the post reads. “It’s a completely bulls**t attack, and people in glass houses should not throw stones.”
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