Compliance Connections

A government watchdog group, Common Cause, recently filed two complaints related to President Trump’s alleged affair with “Stormy Daniels,” an adult film star – one with the Department of Justice and one with the Federal Elections Commission. The group claims that because an LLC set up by Trump’s lawyer paid $130,000 in settlement money to Daniels prior to the election, the money should be classified as a contribution “used for the purpose of influencing the election.” If the settlement is determined to be a contribution, it would vastly surpass existing campaign finance limits. However, wrongdoing may be difficult to prove.