Donald Trump’s campaign has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) against the Washington Post, alleging that the outlet provided “illegal corporate in-kind contributions to Harris for President.”
The complaint references a report from Semafor, which describes how the Washington Post has been funding promotions for stories “critical of Trump amid a decline in subscribers.” According to the report, the Post “significantly intensified its paid advertising campaign,” promoting dozens of election-related articles starting on Monday, Oct. 28, many of which featured generally positive coverage of Kamala Harris.
“The facts support a reasonable inference that The Washington Post made, and Harris for President accepted, an illegal corporate contribution in the form of coordinated communications,” the complaint states. “Therefore, the Commission should find reason to believe a violation has occurred, conduct an immediate investigation, and assess an appropriate sanction for this corporate interference in our elections.”
In an Oct. 31 letter, Trump’s deputy general counsel, Gary Lawkowski, claims that “on the eve of the 2024 general election,” the Washington Post is allegedly “engaging in a dark money corporate campaign against President Donald J. Trump — using its own online advertising under the pretense of promoting Kamala Harris’s presidential candidacy.”
“There is reason to believe that the Washington Post violated the Federal Election Campaign Act and Federal Election Commission regulations by making illegal corporate in-kind contributions,” he wrote. “Therefore, we call upon the Commission to immediately investigate expenditures by The Washington Post.”
I smell an FEC complaint this is classic election interference Washington Post pays to boost stories critical of Trump as subscribers flee | Semafor https://t.co/UaV1yVB7Gv
— Chris LaCivita (@LaCivitaC) October 30, 2024
The Washington Post faced criticism from both readers and staff after announcing last week that it would not endorse a presidential candidate. Owner Jeff Bezos defended this decision, stating that “presidential endorsements do nothing to influence an election’s outcome.”
The complaint highlights that the Federal Election Campaign Act prohibits corporations “from making contributions or expenditures related to any election for political office . . . and forbids any candidate, political committee, or person from knowingly accepting or receiving such contributions.”
“According to reports, the Post is using its advertising powers to promote pro-Kamala and anti-Trump coverage to voters in the final days of the election,” the Trump campaign said in a release. “While they declined to endorse her publicly, they have endorsed her in the dark; so much for ‘Democracy Dies in Darkness.’”
“The mainstream media has become nothing more than pro-Kamala propaganda,” the Trump campaign added. “The Democrat machine must be held accountable.”
The complaint argues that the Washington Post should not be allowed to “take advantage” of the Federal Election Campaign Act’s “press” or “media” exemption for its advertising. Lawkowski contends that by “promoting content to sway the election, the Washington Post is behaving like any other partisan actor in the electoral process, rather than fulfilling its role as a press entity.”
