LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The Democratic Party – and now the Michigan branch – is breaking into a cold sweat after Donald Trump called for an investigation into ActBlue, the Democrats’ fundraising machine.

ActBlue is a nonprofit organization and online fundraising platform that enables Democratic candidates, progressive organizations, and individuals to raise money for political campaigns and causes. Launched in 2004, it provides tools for creating donation pages, processing contributions, and managing donor data, making it easier for campaigns to collect small-dollar donations.

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The platform is widely used by the Democrats to fund elections and mobilize grassroots support. ActBlue does not donate directly to campaigns but facilitates the transfer of funds from donors to recipients, charging a processing fee for its services. However, when reviewing campaign finance data on the Federal Election Commission’s website, ActBlue’s name frequently appears, often listed as the conduit for multiple donations to Democratic candidates.

Trump targets ActBlue’s piggy bank.

Due to mounting allegations that the platform operates as a shady enterprise – including reports and congressional investigations into potentially illegal activity involving ActBlue and similar online fundraising tools – Trump issued a presidential memorandum on April 24 titled “Investigation into Unlawful “Straw Donor” and Foreign Contributions in American Elections.” The memo aims to scrutinize platforms like ActBlue, accusing them of being potential vehicles for sketchy financial practices and undisclosed foreign influence.

The Michigan Democratic Party didn’t take it very well, sending out an email to their supporters the very next day saying, “Trump wants to make it harder for supporters like you to contribute to movements like the Michigan Democratic Party so he can silence his opponents in order to put more money into the pockets of billionaires like Elon Musk.”

The email goes on to say “Trump’s ‘presidential memorandum’ to investigate ActBlue will launch a full-blown assault on the grassroots movement of the Democratic Party.”

At the end of the email, they ask their donors to “fight back and show Trump that his scare tactics won’t work on us” by clicking on a donor button – which goes right to an ActBlue website to donate.

Michigan’s ActBlue contributions are a mystery.

ActBlue reported a record-breaking $1.5 billion in small-dollar donations during the third quarter of 2024 – and battleground states like Michigan contributing significantly to this total. However, there is no publicly available data detailing the exact amount raised by the Michigan Democratic Party through ActBlue in 2024. And our request for that information through the state party was met with silence.

U.S. democratic senate candidate from Michigan defends ActBlue.

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State Rep. Mallory McMorrow (D-Royal Oak), one of the Democrats vying to replace 75-year-old retiring U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, is speaking out in defense of ActBlue. Posting on X, McMorrow said, “Trump isn’t fighting fraud. Just your ability to participate.” She likened the fundraising platform to services like PayPal or Venmo and highlighted its role in her own campaign, noting, “On day one of our senate campaign, more than 12,000 of you donated a little bit to our campaign,” adding, “We could not do this campaign without you and ActBlue is a platform that makes that really easy.”

If everything is above board, why the freakout?

The Democrats insist that Trump’s move is part of a sinister plan to block grassroots momentum and not a legitimate concern about transparency and financial accountability – but if ActBlue and its affiliates are operating transparently, an investigation should pose little concern.