DSCC Chairman Transfers Illegal Campaign Cash to U.S. Treasury

Sen. Jon Tester (D., Mont.), who chairs the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, quickly moved to donate more than $50,000 in potentially illegal contributions to the U.S. Treasury on Monday.

The Democratic incumbent transferred $51,800 from his campaign to the Treasury Department two days after after the Boston Globe reported that the Boston-based Thorton Law Firm may have illegally reimbursed partners for campaign contributions.

Tester is among more than a dozen Democratic senators and Senate candidates scrambling in the wake of the report finding the law firm gave partners bonus checks that mirrored their political contributions in a potential violation of federal law.

Marneé Banks, a spokeswoman for Tester, told the Hill on Monday evening that the Montana Democrat has worked to fix the U.S.’s “broken” campaign finance system.

“He’s fighting to clean up Washington and fix it,” Banks said. “He’s incredibly frustrated with the gridlock that has prevented Congress from passing his legislation which increases transparency in elections, and he’ll keep working to bring people together to ensure that we have more sunlight in campaigns.”

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