Donors Beware! Republicans Have Set Up Fake Websites For Democrats

By Joseph Guyer on February 12, 2014

Spread the word of the Republicans' unethical, and possibly illegal, campaign tactic to dupe unsuspecting Democrats into making donations to the wrong candidate.

If you plan on donating to a congressional Democrat’s campaign through a website anytime soon, you might want to read the fine print at the bottom of the page before whipping out your credit card. According to the Los Angeles Times, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has set up fake websites for Democratic House of Representative candidates such as Nancy Pelosi, Ann Kirkpatrick, Alex Sink and others. The aim of these websites is to dupe Democrats into thinking they’re donating to their congressional representatives when really the money is going to the NRCC.
Approximately 20 such bogus websites are known to exist right now, though more could crop up the sooner we get to the November elections.

In anticipation of the upcoming elections, the Republican Party’s congressional campaign group has reportedly purchased hundreds of domain names that, when Googled, might redirect you to what you think is a legitimate campaign site. If you’re not careful, you could end up making a donation of up to $500 to the wrong candidate.
One such site, NancyPelosi2014.com, features a pleasant photo of a smiling Pelosi, certainly not the kind that Republicans typically share of her. Bold text at the top reads “Nancy Pelosi for Congress,” followed by a huge DONATE button. At first blush, the site appears to have been developed by and for Pelosi supporters, but if you spend the time to read the additional, less prominent copy on the page, you’ll see that the website has clearly been set up to defeat the Minority Leader.

Screengrab from NancyPelosi2014.com

Because these dummy sites intentionally aim to confuse donors, they may be in violation of Federal Election Commission regulations, according to election lawyers.
An NRCC spokesperson, Andrea Bozek, defends the sites, however, arguing that they are a perfectly legal method to raise awareness of congressional Democrats’ shortcomings and to accept donations for the Republican party.
“The real reason Democrats are whining about these websites,” she says, ”is because the web traffic has been off the charts and as a result voters are learning the truth about their candidates’ disastrous records. Not only are these sites extremely effective but they are l00 percent legal—it’s no surprise that Democrats are running scared.”
“Running scared” might more accurately describe a party that must rely on deceit and trickery to garner attention and campaign funds. From the positive-sounding URL titles to the attractive photos of the candidates to the bold text inviting visitors to donate, these websites have been created by desperate, duplicitous Republicans who have nothing left to offer voters except more opposition, more obstructionism and more indifference toward real problems facing poor and middle-class Americans. It’s an insult of the highest order that the NRCC would assume Democrat voters would overlook the fact that these are sham websites.
The following websites are just a sampling of those that Democrat voters ought to look out for. Spread the word that they are to be avoided, and that more may soon follow in the coming months.
sinemaforcongress.com
annkirkpatrick.com
seaneldridgeforcongress2014.com
sinkforcongress2014.com
nickrahallforcongress.com
johnlewis4congress.com
domenic-recchia.com
Edited/Published by: SB
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