Dems introduce ban on pre-checked recurring donation boxes after using them in 2020

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Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., recently introduced legislation to stop political campaigns from making online donations recurring by default, a practice that both the Trump campaign and Democratic groups have taken heat over.

However, Klobuchar and Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., a cosponsor of the legislation, both sent fundraising emails for Democratic groups that linked to pre-checked recurring donation boxes as recently as last year. Klobuchar sent an email fundraising for the DCCC shortly after she dropped out of the presidential race in March 2020, and Booker sent a fundraising email for the DSCC in support of Sen. Raphael Warnock, D-Ga., late last year ahead of Georgia's Senate runoff election.

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"As we work to reform our campaign finance system, we must ensure that people are empowered to make their voices heard – but that will only happen if Americans trust that campaigns aren’t taking advantage of them through tactics like pre-checked recurring donation boxes … it’s clear we should take action to ban this practice and ensure contributors are fully informed," Klobuchar said in a statement.

Klobuchar introduced the legislation on Monday along with Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill. Other cosponsors include Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Angus King, I-Maine, Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. 

Also on Monday, both the DCCC and DSCC fundraised with pre-checked recurring donation boxes online. The DSCC sent an email survey grading Dr. Anthony Fauci's "job performance" that took viewers to a page that pre-checked the "Make it monthly!" donation option. The DCCC sent an email with a similar landing page on Monday.

Web screenshot.

The New York Times reported in April that the Trump campaign and allies, including the Republican National Committee, refunded more than $120 million to online donors compared to the Biden operation's $21 million in refunds in 2020.

The refunds were to donors who gave money via WinRed, an online fundraising platform used by Republicans that was started in response to Democrats' success with ActBlue. Many of the refunds were given to people who alleged they did not notice a pre-checked box for recurring monthly – or even weekly – donations.

Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., waves as she arrives to speak to the Scott County Iowa Democrats Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020, in Bettendorf, Iowa. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Meanwhile, ActBlue has been open about the importance of recurring donations for candidates on the platform. 

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"Recurring pledges are like gold," ActBlue stated in a 2014 blog post announcing the option of "infinite recurring" donations that have no expiration date (ActBlue previously limited recurring donations to a two-year timespan).

Fox News' inquiries to Klobuchar's and Booker's offices were not returned at the time of publication.