Grifters everywhere

Anyone who has donated to a candidate knows you go on a list the minute they get your contact information. The only way to avoid this, in Wisconsin at least, is to donate $10 or less in cash. Then, the candidate doesn't need to collect your contact information for campaign finance reports.

Otherwise, you enter the fun house of infinite asks. You can't unsuscribe, you can't make them stop. Block them and they pop up under a different number. You can't return the mountains of campaign contribution requests. And, because they are political communication, donation requests (often DEMANDS) are not stopped by adding your number to the Do Not Call Registry.

Annoying. Frustrating. Maddening. But mostly harmless, right?

Well, no. 

A new article on Substack by Adam Bonica, Hook and Squeeze, details how, "Democratic consultants, committees, and party leaders built a fundraising spam pipeline that funnels money from a captive pool of elderly donors into their own operations."

This must-read article describes not only who gets hurt--often elderly people who end up donating tens, sometimes hundreds, of thousands of dollars they can not afford to lose--but also, who doesn't want us to know. Bonica details his attempts to publish the piece in mainstream outlets only to be blocked by the threat of legal action.

Read this piece and watch out for friends or family members who may be sucked into this grifty cesspool. Share the article with others. It includes several illustrations and examples of the types of emails, texts, and letters to watch out for.

Don't stop supporting candidates, but donate directly to them through their campaign sites or by mailing a check. Candidates need money, but they may not get much of what's raised in their names by some of these sleezy businesses.