President Trump has already made well over $1B off the presidency in his 2d term. Many of the deals he is profiting from appear to violate the Constitution’s foreign and domestic emoluments clauses. But Congress needs to codify them. Our new paper explains how: www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

Corruption is hardly a new problem, but the abuses taking place now are unlike anything seen in generations. Here’s what Congress can do about it: bit.ly/43MmpHM

To prevent corruption, the Constitution prohibits the president and other officials from receiving benefits from outside influences. However, Congress must act to ensure these provisions are enforceable. Our latest report offers recommendations for reform. bit.ly/3XdgCaq

A strategy that helped antiabortion activists in their quest to overturn Roe v. Wade could also work for campaign finance reform: enacting state "trigger laws" that challenge the legitimacy of Citizens United. bit.ly/3Xsczat

There's an underutilized tool states can use to directly challenge Citizens United and build momentum for legal change. My colleague @jayswanson.bsky.social and I write about the potential for trigger laws in our latest piece. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

A number of Trump’s actions in his second term potentially violate the Emoluments Clauses — which bar the president and other federal officials from receiving benefits from foreign governments, as well as federal or state governments. Join us for a Reddit AMA: 

The DISCLOSE Act—which would require dark money groups to disclose contributions of $10k+—passed the House in 2010 and came within one vote of defeating a Republican filibuster. It's since passed the House multiple times in democracy packages. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/12/u...

My latest with @lisadanetz.bsky.social explaining what we can do to combat political corruption

During the Gilded Age, demonstrations and political organizing led to reforms that reduced corporate influence over elections. Today, intense pressure from the public is needed to fight corruption and restore accountability. bit.ly/4mcMsPL

THREAD: This morning, President Trump and members of his cabinet announced a set of sweeping, unprecedented, and unwarranted actions to impose federal control over local policing in Washington, D.C.

NEW: The most comprehensive analysis to date of online political spending in 2024 shows that groups spent at least $1.9 billion, with striking differences in how candidates, parties, and outside groups used their ad dollars. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

Trump is launching a branded mobile phone and cell service, with profits going to the Trump Organization. This isn’t just a business move—it raises serious concerns about conflicts of interest. www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

A tech mogul tied to the CCP was able to buy personal access to the president and even go to the White House. He can’t legally donate $5 to the president’s campaign he can spend $3.7M on the president’s meme coin, no questions asked. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/06/u...

The Emoluments Clauses are some of our nation's oldest anticorruption safeguards. In our latest, @danw329.bsky.social and I explain what emoluments are, why they've been in the news lately, and what Congress can do to improve enforcement. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

"The Rockefellers and the Vanderbilts back in the Guilded Age had a lot of influence [on] American politics," @danw329.bsky.social told @techcrunch.com. But "they didn't literally have offices in the White House."

A foreign government is gifting the president a “flying palace” luxury plane that his library gets to keep after he leaves office, reportedly so that he can keep using it. It should be obvious why this a big problem if true. www.nytimes.com/live/2025/05...

This is another unconstitutional notion. Only Congress can suspend habeas corpus and only during rebellion or invasion. As a Trump-appointed judge recently found, the U.S. isn't under invasion.

Politicians won’t have any incentive to curb reliance on secret spending unless campaign finance law changes.

Dark money in the 2024 elections reached a record high of $1.9 billion, about double the prior record in 2020. New analysis from @brennancenter and @annalecta.bsky.social www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

The president attending a private dinner followed by a tour of the White House for the largest investors in his crypto business is truly wild, even by today’s standards. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/23/t...

New piece. Canada & the US each passed major campaign finance reform packages in the 70s — but ours fell victim to the juristocracy. Today, Canada’s elections are made fairer by spending limits, contribution limits, and public funding, while our system betrays democratic values. Gotta change that…

Canada shows how democracies can regulate campaign finance for the common good.

With reports that the CFBP is laying off almost 90 percent of its workforce, now seems like a good time to re-up this analysis from @ianvan.bsky.social and @eepetry.bsky.social on who really benefits from shuttinf down one of our leading consumer watchdogs. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

NEW: The Brennan Center filed a comment with the Federal Election Commission today underscoring the importance of the FEC's independence from political interference. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

A crucial question about the new tariffs is who will get exemptions. Without transparency and safeguards to prevent conflicts of interests, decisions to give or withhold exemptions are ripe for political interference and self-dealing. To understand why, read www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

BREAKING: The Brennan Center and other voting rights groups have filed a lawsuit challenging President Trump's recent executive order on voting and elections that violates the Constitution and could block millions of Americans from registering to vote. Read more in our complaint: 1/

So proud of my @brennancenter.bsky.social colleagues and our partner organizations for this vital work protecting free and fair elections! www.brennancenter.org/our-work/cou...

🚨 Government records are disappearing. Troves of public records and data continue to vanish overnight — weakening transparency and our ability to hold those in power accountable. This isn’t about politics. It’s about access to facts. And the consequences affect everyone.🧵

NEW: Analysis of the Arizona Supreme Court case challenging the voter-approved Voters' Right to Know Act, which shines a light on anonymous big money in Arizona @statecourtreport.bsky.social statecourtreport.org/our-work/ana...

Does evidence that small donors play some role in polarization tell us that small donors--or public financing programs that empower them--are bad? Nope, small donors are still good for democracy… 🧵

Tariffs in the first Trump administration resulted in a massive financial windfall for Republican-aligned companies. Without oversight, the new administration could use tariffs and exemptions as a tool to send benefits to campaign donors and other allies. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

You might think Trump's claim to economic populism would mean he'd like the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. His move to shut down the CFPB seems to align with what some of his biggest donors want. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

Despite promising to help working class voters, the Trump admin is trying to close the watchdog that protects everyday consumers from abusive financial practices. This analysis with @ianvan.bsky.social looks at why. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

The danger of private interests capturing our political system has never been more apparent. Here's what we can do about it:

For researchers interested in megadonors, conflicts of interest, and a transactional approach to government, my latest lays out where to look. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

When it comes to presidential politics, it’s a billionaire’s world. But the 2024 elections in New York showed another way is possible. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

When it comes to checks & balances, states play a bigger role than most people realize in determining whether and how federal policies get implemented. @aliciabannon.bsky.social looks at the importance of state courts and constitutions in shaping--and curbing abuses of--federal power.

"The firing is a dangerous and unprecedented maneuver that opens the door to a partisan takeover of the watchdog agency that both sides of the aisle have long agreed needs to be independent and free from political weaponization." @danw329.bsky.social www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

Since the Supreme Court decided Citizens United 15 years ago, the ultrawealthy have fueled campaigns and drowned out small donations from everyday Americans. But New York State is showing the country how to meet this moment: small donor public financing. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

The numbers are in on NY's small donor campaign financing program. Big takeaway: it works. "It's already changing New York's campaign finance landscape for the better, for candidates and everyday New Yorkers alike." - Brennan Center's @marinapino.bsky.social

1/ Elon Musk is accessing private government systems and shutting agencies, seemingly w/o regard for his massive conflicts of interest. The power of money in US politics is nothing new. But today it is *different* than what we have seen before. To fix the problem we need to understand what’s changed

The story of how Elon Musk’s young employees gained control of sensitive government data and spending decisions begins in 2010, when five judges twisted the First Amendment to ensure corporations and the individuals who get rich off them can spend as much as they want on elections.

Ignore the media headlines reporting that freezing federal spending or shuttering federal agencies “raise questions” or “push boundaries.” It’s an anticonstitutional lawbreaking spree.

Political spending online hit $1.35 billion on just two platforms. Yet it's not as closely regulated as traditional media. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...

Tech oligarchs were a notable presence at the inauguration ceremony. Thanks to Citizens United, we have a political system dominated by ultra-wealthy individuals to a degree never before seen in American politics — a cash-for-access economy. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

The excesses of money in politics in the 2024 election💸started with the🏛️Citizens United🏛️decision, which turns 15 this month.🎂We may have forgotten, but almost all this craziness was illegal in 2010. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

NEW from the Brennan Center: Citizens United, the controversial Supreme Court decision that led to the rise of super PACd and dark money, turns 15 this month. The decision shaped the 2024 campaign like no other before. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/res...

Online political advertisers spent $1.35 billion on Google and Meta this election cycle — more than double the amount measured through the end of August. www.brennancenter.org/our-work/ana...