President Biden's favorite political action committee (PAC), Future Forward, has some 'splainin' to do - after a $12 million "discrepancy" was found in its financial disclosures, the Washington Free Beacon reports.
According to the 2021 filings, Future Forward claimed it received a mere $3.4 million in contributions from its dark-money sister entity, Future Forward USA Action. However, the latter group declared to the IRS that it had funneled a whopping $15.3 million to the Super PAC in the same year. The $12 million delta is not only puzzling but raises red flags that could trigger a federal probe. Kendra Arnold, the executive director of the watchdog group Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, didn't mince words: "This situation calls for an investigation." And that's putting it mildly.
Of note, the White House has endorsed Future Forward as the "pre-eminent super PAC" supporting Biden's reelection bid.
This revelation could turn into a PR disaster for Biden, especially as he gears up for the 2024 elections. Remember, Future Forward has amassed a war chest of nearly $400 million in the last five years to fuel Democratic ad campaigns in crucial battleground states. Much of this has been filled by its dark-money affiliate, Future Forward USA Action, which operates under a veil of secrecy.
And of course - Biden, a hypocrite and a liar, decried dark money last September, labeling it a "serious problem facing our democracy." A few months later, his deputy chief of staff, Jennifer O’Malley Dillon, was singing praises for Future Forward’s "key role" in his reelection bid.
When asked about the $12 million gap, both Future Forward and its dark money arm provided crickets.
"Future Forward USA Action admitted to making over $3 million in earmarked political contributions, where they apparently obscured the true super PAC donor's identity by routing the money through the nonprofit," GOP election lawyer Charlie Spies told the Beacon. "The U.S. DOJ has sent people to prison for this sort of illegal activity, and the FEC has imposed major fines on conservative organizations accused of less blatant earmarking."
From 2018 to 2020, Future Forward's reporting contained even more discrepancies. In one instance, the Super PAC claimed it had no dedicated staff and had never reported any payroll expenditures to the FEC. Instead, it used staff from its dark money affiliate. And yet, the numbers don't add up—again. In 2020, Future Forward reported $467,204 in in-kind staff contributions from the dark money arm, which in its IRS filings claimed it provided only $67,479 worth of in-kind staff time. The two amounts should match.
According to nonprofit attorney Jason Torchinsky, such discrepancies could lead to "substantial fines," as FEC penalties are often assessed based on the amount in dispute. Paul Kamenar, an attorney with the National Legal and Policy Center watchdog group, is pushing for an "independent audit" and an "investigation and possible enforcement action by both the IRS and the FEC."
"There must be an independent audit of both groups for these egregious discrepancies and an investigation and possible enforcement action by both the IRS and the FEC," said Kamenar.
