Another Victory for Conservatives:
FEC Rules Against DNC/Jesse Jackson

Commission fines liberals, Democrats $200,000 for election law violations

ALEXANDRIA, VA - The Federal Election Commission (FEC) today announced that the Rev. Jesse Jackson and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) have been found guilty of violating federal election law. The American Conservative Union filed a complaint in 2001 against Jackson and the DNC in response to severe transgressions during the 2000 election cycle. The FEC has slapped both groups with stiff fines totaling a combined $200,000.

"The word is now out; crooked election practices that have become the standard of the Left will not be tolerated," said ACU Chairman David A. Keene. "Jesse Jackson, the Democratic National Committee and their liberal cronies have been found guilty of sever violations of federal election law and must now pay a steep price. This ruling is a real vindication for Republicans and Conservatives across America."

Prior to the 2000 election, Jackson and his Rainbow/PUSH Coalition orchestrated a massive voter registration drive. Election law mandates that such efforts be strictly non-partisan, but the campaign was closely coordinated with the DNC and exclusively targeted highly democratic areas. In addition to planning and coordinating campaign efforts, Jackson's group was directly reimbursed over $450,000 by the DNC to pay for its work. The ACU filed suit in 2001 after the public evidence of the abuse became too visible to ignore.

"Jesse Jackson and the Democratic National Committee committed gross violations of election law, not to mention basic ethics, and many looked the other way," Keene continued. "The ACU will not sit idly by while left-wing interest groups cheat and break the rules. I applaud the FEC for this ruling. "

ACU has filed several similar complaints and has never lost a case, including a victory against the anti-gun rights group Handgun Control. On May 19, ACU filed an ethics complaint against Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid and hopes for a quick investigation.