FEC Chair: Didn’t Think I’d Need To Clarify, But Taking Foreign Dirt Is 100% Illegal

The chair of the Federal Election Commission took a transparent swipe at President Trump on Thursday evening when she posted a statement outlining the illegality of accepting anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election.

“I would not have thought that I needed to say this,” FEC Chair Ellen Weintraub said in a tweet of her statement, which did not name Trump, but was a clear reference to Trump’s recent admission that he’d probably at least listen to a foreign entity that tried to offer him dirt on a political opponent. He also wouldn’t say for sure whether he’d call the FBI if he received information from a foreign national.

“Let me make something 100 percent clear to the American public and anyone running for public office: It is illegal for any person to solicit, accept or receive anything of value from a foreign national in connection with a U.S. election,” she said. “This is not a novel concept. Electoral intervention from foreign governments has been considered unacceptable since the beginning of our nation.”

I would not have thought that I needed to say this. pic.twitter.com/T743CsXq79

— Ellen L Weintraub (@EllenLWeintraub) June 13, 2019

Trump’s remarks sparked outrage from Democrats and pushed some Republicans to speak out on the issue. Some of Trump’s most ardent defenders, like Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), were clear that accepting any foreign assistance during a federal election was a “mistake.”