Federal Judge Says No Evidence Trump’s Executive Order Threatens FEC Independence

A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a case brought by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) against the Trump administration’s executive orders, arguing that the independence of the Federal Election Committee (FEC) was significantly threatened, according to Fox News. 

The executive order referenced is Section 7 of Executive Order 14215, which states that:

The President and the Attorney General, subject to the President’s supervision and control, shall provide authoritative interpretations of law for the executive branch…No employee of the executive branch acting in their official capacity may advance an interpretation of the law as the position of the United States that contravenes the President or the Attorney General’s opinion on a matter of law…

The DNC argues that under this section, the President has the authority to order the FEC to take a position on any question of law within the FEC’s jurisdiction. In other words, they worried that the Trump administration had given itself the ability to force the FEC to take favorable positions that would ultimately help Republicans and harm Democrats. This would theoretically stretch from issues regarding donor disclosure requirements to prioritizing investigations of campaign finance law violations.

The Biden-era judge presiding over the case disagrees. United States District Judge Amir Ali dismissed the case “for lack of a concrete and imminent injury sufficient to establish standing.” He further argued that there was no evidence that the Trump administration had taken effective steps to infringe on how the FEC operates. 

A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed a case brought by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) against the Trump administration’s executive orders, arguing that the independence of the Federal Election Committee (FEC) was significantly threatened, according to Fox News. 

The executive order referenced is Section 7 of Executive Order 14215, which states that:

The President and the Attorney General, subject to the President’s supervision and control, shall provide authoritative interpretations of law for the executive branch…No employee of the executive branch acting in their official capacity may advance an interpretation of the law as the position of the United States that contravenes the President or the Attorney General’s opinion on a matter of law…

The DNC argues that under this section, the President has the authority to order the FEC to take a position on any question of law within the FEC’s jurisdiction. In other words, they worried that the Trump administration had given itself the ability to force the FEC to take favorable positions that would ultimately help Republicans and harm Democrats. This would theoretically stretch from issues regarding donor disclosure requirements to prioritizing investigations of campaign finance law violations.

The Biden-era judge presiding over the case disagrees. United States District Judge Amir Ali dismissed the case “for lack of a concrete and imminent injury sufficient to establish standing.” He further argued that there was no evidence that the Trump administration had taken effective steps to infringe on how the FEC operates.