This month, the commission’s three Republicans defended their foot-dragging, arguing that it would be unfair to go after donors in the 2012 cycle, because they did not have enough notice about how the FEC would enforce federal rules after the Citizens United ruling. Though this was a poor reason for ignoring the law, the implication was that the typically toothless panel might more seriously scrutinize dark money sloshing through the system going forward. Lee Goodman, a Republican commissioner, confirmed that “everyone should be on notice” to The Post’s Matea Gold.
Problem solved? Maybe not. The Republican commissioners also argued that only those who “intentionally” skirt the law by funneling money through a corporation “for the purpose of” evading reporting requirements should be punished. This leaves the commissioners massive leeway to decline to investigate all sorts of shady activity.