The three Republican appointees on the divided Federal Election Commission have indicated that political donors who give through private companies solely to shield their identities can be sanctioned, signaling that the agency may scrutinize a rash of “pop-up” corporations giving large sums to super PACs.
Their stance suggests the potential for movement by the polarized six-person panel, where a sense of stasis has been the norm. Democratic commissioners, however, reacted with skepticism, saying their GOP colleagues have until now delayed and actively blocked examination of such cases.
But Lee Goodman, one of the Republican commissioners, said in an interview that contributors seeking to mask themselves through a privately held company or limited-liability corporation should think twice.