Twitter isn’t news.
Surely you could find an actual source for this.
Laziness maybe?
CAUGHT: Senator Sends Email Asking for Hurricane Relief, Donation Link Goes Directly to Democrat Political Fundraiser
By Nick Arama - October 15, 2018
Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL), who is running for re-election in the midterms, is coming under fire for an email he sent out encouraging people to donate for hurricane relief in the wake of the disastrous Hurricane Michael. The hurricane killed at least 17 people with that total expected to climb with hundreds still reported as ‘missing.’ There was incredible damage and hundreds of thousands were left without power.
The problem?
The email listed nonprofit groups that provide aid, but the links to the groups all directed to ActBlue, a Democratic fundraising group.
From Free Beacon:
Within hours of the storm hitting, Nelson sent out an email with a list of nonprofit organizations, which he said are “vital resources for people who need help.” The nonprofits include American Red Cross, Big Bend Homeless Coalition, Florida Disaster Fund, and Team Rubicon, among others.
Each organization has a link that sends users to a page on ActBlue’s website asking people to donate to hurricane relief efforts.
Nelson also tweeted out an ActBlue link for people to give donations for hurricane relief.
The devastation from #HurricaneMichael is widespread across the Panhandle and Big Bend in Florida. Anything you can give to these nonprofit organizations will help people with needed relief. https://t.co/RFd59Dty4q pic.twitter.com/1MARpUE6C4
— Nelson for U.S. Senate (@NelsonForSenate) October 10, 2018
“The devastation from #HurricaneMichael is widespread across the Panhandle and Big Bend in Florida,” Nelson tweeted. “Anything you can give to these nonprofit organizations will help people with needed relief.”
While the money appears to be designated to be split between the reputable non-political charities, what this allows Act Blue to do is garner a potential donor list of names and emails to use.
The group is a PAC which defines itself as “the online clearinghouse for Democratic action.” They claim to have raised $2,862,403,745 for “Democrats and progressive causes” in fourteen years.
The National Republican Senatorial Committee blasted Nelson.
“Bill Nelson has reached a new low in a desperate attempt to save his political career,” said NRSC spokesperson Camille Gallo. “While Floridians were trying to save their homes and lives, Bill Nelson used this tragedy as an opportunity to save his taxpayer-funded job by shamelessly using disaster relief efforts to bolster his fundraising operation.”
This is not the first fundraising email that Nelson sent this week. He sent multiple emails to voters who were within the path of the hurricane with bolded statements, including the captions “Losing Florida would cost Democrats the Senate” and “We can’t win without your immediate donation, friends.”
This wasn’t the first time Nelson had done something like this.
He also was criticized last year for trying to fundraise off Hurricane Irma when he asked for money after he encouraged airlines not to raise their fares during the storm.
I'll wait.