‘Scam PACs’ invoke veterans, police and politicians to get millions from donors

AUGUSTA, Maine — More than two years after U.S. Rep. Jared Golden condemned a political group for using his veteran status to raise money, it continues to invoke his name as part of a large network funneling millions from donors into a shadowy web of companies.

The American Veterans Support Group PAC is among well over a dozen political committees that use similar telemarketing tactics. Their calls play on sympathy for veterans, police and others while saying money raised will help candidates who support them.

The veteran group appears to be doing almost nothing of the sort. More than four-fifths of its money has gone to administrative expenses since 2023 began, according to filings with the Federal Elections Commission. While the rest is categorized as helping candidates, all of it went to just four vendors for phone banking and related costs.

Those vendors got $13 million since last year from this group and 18 others, including Police Coalition of America PAC and Autism Hear Us Now PAC. Some were called “scam PACs” in a since-settled class-action lawsuit from 2021 that linked the network to Las Vegas telemarketer Richard Zeitlin, who was federally charged last year for allegedly defrauding donors.

One expert who reviewed recent calls from two different groups said they appear to be correcting for legal issues identified then. These efforts benefit from loose campaign finance laws that give wide latitude to political groups to raise money. There is no legal threshold for how much a group needs to spend directly on elections.

“I know that there are plenty of surveys out there talking about how people think politicians are just getting into politics and want to hold office to make money, and I think seeing scam PACs on top of holding that belief does create an overall negativity about the system,” said Shanna Ports, a lawyer at the Campaign Legal Center, a national watchdog group.

It is unclear whether Zeitlin remains involved in the network. A lawyer who has represented him did not respond to a request for comment on Monday. Paul DeRidder, a Texas man listed as the representative for the veterans committee , did not respond to a phone call and emails.

Zeitlin was charged for conduct that took place between 2017 and 2020. Prosecutors said that he directed employees to mislead donors into thinking they were giving to charities. A May call that appears to be from the veterans group and was recorded by NoMoRobo, a platform that blocks spam calls, is explicit about that legal line.

Hi, this is Tony with the American Veteran Support Committee. Back. We use prerecorded audio for accuracy. Okay, hold on a sec. Hi, thanks for holding for me. It’s John Walden for the American Veterans Support Committee PAC. We’re having our fundraiser and reaching out to everyone in the area because many of our veterans continue to suffer from their injuries. So as a PAC and not a charity, our hope is to see lawmakers elected that will make sure our veterans receive the proper medical attention and the benefits they need and deserve. Now, when you receive your contribution return envelope, can we count on you to return a small contribution for the drive? So can we count on you to return a small contribution for the drive? Okay. Goodbye.

This call, which was recorded on May 3, 2024 by NoMoRobo, a program that blocks spam calls, appears to be from American Veterans Support Group PAC. It is using U.S. Rep. Jared Golden’s name and veteran status to raise money from donors across the country. The call is similar to others from groups that use the same network of vendors to fuel fundraising.

“We’re having our fundraiser and reaching out to everyone in the area because many of our veterans continue to suffer from their injuries,” the caller says. “So as a PAC and not a charity, our hope is to see lawmakers elected that will make sure our veterans receive the proper medical attention and the benefits they need and deserve.”

Since last year, the American Veterans Support Group PAC has sent nearly $525,000 to the four vendors linked to the rest of the network. Ten others, mostly appealing to those who support veterans and police, have sent more money. It has reported spending $12,000 to boost Golden during that period, but all of those expenses went to those vendors.

Golden, a Marine veteran who represents Maine’s 2nd District appears on the group’s website alongside two other lawmakers — Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Illinois, and Rep. Brian Mast, R-Florida, and a list of bills that they support. Many of the other groups have similar websites, including ones aimed at police and advocacy for breast cancer research .

“It’s especially disgusting to use veterans as cover for this racket,” Golden, who is running for a fourth term in November against state Rep. Austin Theriault, R-Fort Kent, said in a statement. “They should be held accountable for misleading the public and if current law is insufficient to stop them, Congress should act.”

The fundraising appeals often begin with a sympathetic appeal. In a recent call , one of the callers for the Honoring American Law Enforcement PAC began by noting line-of-duty deaths and saying the group supports politicians who “stand with our police.”

The network largely gets its money from small donors. Political groups do not have to disclose those who give less than $200. More than 93 percent of the money that went to the group invoking Golden came from those types of donors since last year.

One of its donors was Marius Bodea, a New Jersey deck contractor who has given $800. In an interview, he remembered a call noting that the group supports veterans, saying he gave because “I care” about the cause and got receipts after donating.

“If they don’t do what they say they’re going to do, I don’t like that,” Bodea said. “I gave them money for a good cause, not for something else.”