The committee on rules and administration will come to order. Good morning to i want to thank amy colleagues for joinin us today. Id like to welcome our nominees to todays hearing. Shawna bashard, sean cooksy and alan dixon are the president s nominees to be members of the federal elections committee. As our witnesses are joining us remotely i also understand that their families and friends are watching today and so i welcome them as well. This is a big responsibility, its a significant president ial nomination, and significant to the work of this committee. And i know youre proud of your Family Member as they have moved forward to this opportunity. Let me say a little bit about a couple of nominees and then im going to turn to another committee member, senator cruz to talk about the third nominee. Allen dickerson is the nominee to be a member of the federal Elections Commission for a term, expiring on april the 30th, 2025. Mr. Dickersons been practicing law for 20 years, primarily in the areas of First Amendment and Campaign Finance. Since 2011 mr. Dickersons been the legal director of the institute for free speech, a Nonprofit Organization that litigates First Amendment and Campaign Finance cases in state and federal courts. Hes also a captain in the judge advocate generals corps for the United States army reserve. He and his wife have one child aurelia and are expecting a second child. Shaw shawna brussard, expect she was born at vand denberg air force base in santa barbara, california but she truly hails from louisiana, as was clear with my visit with her this week. She graduated from dill lard university in 1991, and Southern University law school in 1995. She has had a 25year legal career. The past 12 of which shes worked at the fec, first as an enforcement attorney in the office of the general counsel until 2015, and then as executive assistant for commissioner wother since 2015. Ms. Brushard worked fi Internal Revenue service in louisiana as the prosecutor for the attorney general and new Orleans Parrish District Attorney and is a clerk of the Second Circuit court of appeals. Id like to recognize senator cruz to introduce our third nominee. Mr. Cooksy. Thank you, mr. Chairman, im very proud today to introduce sean cooksy as a nominee to the federal election committee. As the chairman knows hes from missouri and he currently works for the junior senator from missouri, but im going to go ahead and claim him anyway as an honorary tex an. Not only did he clerk for one of the most respected appellate judges in the country, jerry smith, in my hometown of houston, but he also worked on my staff as deputy chief counsel, serving the 29 Million People of the great state of texas. Seans impeccable educational credentials include graduating from Truman State University and receiving his jd from the university of chicago law school, where he graduated with high honors, and order of the coif, from there, as i mentioned, he clerked for judge smith on the u. S. Court of appeals for the fifth circuit. Before joining one of the nations most respected law firms in d. C. As a litigation associate focusing on appeals and constitutional law. Most notably as a young associate he worked on a Supreme Court matter in which his client ultimately prevailed 81. Then in 2018 sean joined my staff as deputy chief counsel, working on a wide array of important and complex issues, including election law. He did a fantastic job. And we were sad but also excited for him when he left in 2019 to serve as senator hawleys chief counsel and senator hawley came and joined us on the judiciary committee. He still serves in that role doing an excellent job for senator hawley and he advises senator hawley on constitutional law and judicial nominations, on election law, federal criminal law, Ethics Compliance and a whole lot more. My experience with sean has demonstrated to me that hes not only an exceptionally talented lawyer but hes also someone deeply committed to the rule of law. He will be prepared to hit the ground running on day one as a commissioner, and i have complete confidence that he will faithfully apply the law fairly and neutrally. I would also note that sean and his wife ellen are expecting a baby this winter. And so these are propitious times in the cooksy household and im proud to introduce my friend sean. There you go. Thank you, senator cruz, three nominees, two babies on the way in two of these families. Earlier this year our committee gathered to confirm a nominee to restore a quorum at the fec, since that confirmation of commissioner tray trainer, the fec once again lost a quorum with the resignation of commissioner hunter in july of this year. The confirmation of these three nominees before the committee today will restore a quorum at the fec, but more importantly the confirmation of these three nominees would restore a full slate of commissioners to the fec for the First Time Since february 2017. And while the fec is authorized to have six commissioners, it currently has only three. Only one commissioner, commissioner trainer, serves on an unexpired term. The other two commissioners serve on holdover status, their terms having expired years ago, commissioner wothers in 2009 and commissioner winetraubs in 2007. And while a simple quorum allows the fec to hold hearings, make new rules, advise through advisory opinions, conduct investigations, or approve enforcement actions, a full slate of commissioners means that the fec is not hobbled and is able to continue its work when a single commissioner departs the agency for some time now when one commissioner left for whatever reason the commission was not able to function. Hopefully our action, through these hearings, and later will, for the first time, again, restore six members to the commission. The commission plays a vital role for federal campaign committees, as i mentioned in our last hearing for the last nominee, i was a former secretary of state, i worked with the commission on a regular basis, then, since ive been a candidate in nine federal elections, which is probably about average for this committee. And the members of this committee and the senate should know the importance of a fully functioning fec, to federal candidates who need to avail themselves of the fecs guidelines and advisory opinions. We also know all the important stability that the Agency Brings to the community thats regulated by the fec. I look forward to hearing testimony from our nominees today. I also, again, let me say, look forward to having a full slate of commissioners at the fec, and hope were able to get that done before the Congress Adjourns this year. Id like to turn to my good friend senator klobuchar for her Opening Statement. Thank you very much, mr. Chairman, today, as you know, we are here to consider three nominees to the federal Election Commission, which is, of course, the independent Agency Responsible for enforcing our federal Campaign Finance laws. First i want to bring up the fact that given this committee has oversight over federal elections, its important to acknowledge that nearly 160 million americans voted this year, more people than ever before in the United States history, and even though we are in the midst of a global pandemic, elections were administered successfully due to the hard work of state and local officials, both democratic and republican, and independent state and local officials. Last week officials in charge of Election Security working in the trump administration, including dhs, people there, secretaries of state, and the Election Assistance Commission put out a joint statement that said the november 3rd election was the most secure in American History. Again, this is testament to local officials also to chris crabs who unfortunately was fired yesterday by the president via tweet. But i know that he has a respect, as i saw the statements from Many Republican senators today, of many in the u. S. Senate. Regardless of that unfortunate incident i would say we all owe a debt of gratitude to all these hard working Election Officials. Turning to the topic of todays hearing, with the exception as the chairman noted of a brief period this summer the fec has been without a quorum for nearly 15 months. Over that time ive repeatedly urged my colleagues to work with us to get the agency up and running. Fec nominees are typically confirmed in bipartisan pairs, this spring the majority chose to push forward a controversial nominee without a democratic nominee. This approach opened the door to the fec losing its quorum just 46 days after it was restored. This persistent lack of quorum is a major problem. We know why and we must have an fec that can enforce the law. The truth is, we need it more than ever, the center for responsive politics estimates spending for the 2020 election cycle was approximately, ready for this, 14 billion. Thats more than double the 2016 election cycle. And it includes 2. 6 billion in outside spending by superpacs, Political Parties and dark money groups. In order for our democracy to work for the people we need strong rules for Campaign Spending and we need a Strong Agency to enforce the rules. Congress created the fec for that very purpose after the water gate scandal to help restore the publics faith in the electoral policy. Since taking over as Ranking Member of this committee ive worked with several of my colleagues to propose solutions to try to get the agency back on track, including a bill at the very least we should Work Together to select strong experienced nominees from both parties who understand that their job is to enforce the law and protect our election system. I am concerned about the views of some of these nominees. I will briefly go through them. I did have a good discussion with all three of them, i appreciate that, and i had the opportunity to discuss views such as social media, political ads and the need for the fec to move forward with the rules regarding those ads which account for billions of dollars in political spending. First, mr. Dickerson has extensive experience in Campaign Finance. Unfortunately he has been focusing on less, not more transparency for political spending. Hes opposed restrictions on individual donations, attempts to bring transparency to corporate and dark money spending after the Citizens United decision, and efforts to stop foreign money from influencing our elections, if were going to break out of the gridlock that has paralyzed the fec, we need commissioners that can Work Together to find areas where they agree. It is my sincere hope that mr. Dickersons views on the role of money and transparency in politics do not make it harder to find consensus with the other commissioners. Mr. Cooksy, already discussed by senator cruz, he does not have an extensive record on Campaign Finance or election issues and his testimony for this hearing doesnt provide enough information regarding his qualifications. His view of the commission, and how he plans his approach to his role, if confirmed. Again, i appreciated the fact that he talked to me, and we discussed some really important issues, and i appreciated the words that we heard, that they were willing to work on issues like the political ads and the fact that we dont have any set rules in place for social media ads. Finally, we have ms. Brussard and i so appreciated, mr. Chairman, your introduction of her. I have been urging the white house to nominate her for more than a year. Our hope was that she months ago she would have confirmed to fill the vacant seat. I wont go into all that but lets talk about her because shes great. Ms. Brussard served as a lawyer at the fec for 12 years, both as a staff attorney and counselor to the commissioner, shes immensely qualified and well respectedpy her careers, her experience as an fec staffer would bring an important perspective to the commission. She would also be the first person of color to serve on the fec, i hope my colleagues that are here remotely listen to that. Its kind of incredible that has not been anyone in the past, and i cant think of anyone better to be the first. The pandemic has shown us how resilient our democracy can be when dedicated professionals work to respond to a crisis. As i said state and local Election Officials rose to the challenge, and now it is time for the fec to rise to the challenge of the issues ahead of them. Of course, individual cases that come before them, but then the key is modernizing some of our rules and the like to make them more responsive to the challenges of our elections of our time. Thank you very much, mr. Chairman. Thank you, senator klobuchar. Were going to go to our testimony now from the witnesses. We, of course, have your written statements in the record, but glad for you to use up to five minutes in whatever way youd like to talk about your background, the fec, and what this committee should be considering. Lets first go to ms. Brussard. Im not sure if youre able to hear me. We can hear. Thank you. Good morning, everyone. Thank you, chairman blunt, Ranking Member klobuchar and members of the committee. It is an honor to appear before you a today as a nominee for the federal Election Commission. Id like to first take the opportunity to say a few thank yous if i may. I want to thank my brothers juan and pierre, i couldnt ask for a greater cheering team, and my nephew tristan in new mexico, he told me this weekend it was a tight race between myself and my brother, his father pierre, but apparently this process has bumped me up. I want to say hello to tristan. Like my brothers, i would also like to thank my friends and the women of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated for support and encouragement throughout this process. Under traditional times i would have loved to see a hearing room filled with women in red. But were not in traditional times. I must take a moment to thank the most instrumental people in my life, my parents, in a little town called gibson, louisiana. My father tired from the United States air force after 25 years of service of this country and my mother is a retired middle schoolteacher having taught in the same school she attended as a child. Together they instilled within me a pride in Public Service and a commitment to community that has guided the course of my professional career and personal life. First professionally as an assistant District Attorney then as a deputy Disciplinary Council and now with the fec, for more than a decade i have worked every day to advance the fecs mission. Although the finance process has never been more urgent. Now more than ever its time to Work Together towards repairing the american peels trust in this agency and now it has never been more urgent for the commission to have individuals fill these seats who are measured, impartial and focused on building consensus. As an fec attorney i carefully consider each enforcement matter before me making sure my recommended dispositions were supported by facts in the law. My recommendations were fair, yet firm, and were always made with an aim towards promoting transparency. As counsel for commissioner steven wother the last six years i have worked with Commission Officers to build consensus from everything from resolving enforcement matters, to Commission Budget and management issues. I am grateful to commissioner wother for the he is an example of how to reach across the aisle to get work done. I also take this opportunity to thank commissioner ellen winetraub, she too has been supportive in her dedication to the agency and its mission is unsurpassed. When i started working for the American People at the fec 12 years ago i never envisioned that i would be testifying before congress today, about my qualifications in the interest of serving as the commissioner. The opportunity to lead the commission rarely comes to those already working within the agency. But it is this very experience, working day to day, side by side with the fec staff, in support of the agencys mission, that makes me uniquely prepared to serve the American People. If confirmed, i will approach my work as a commissioner, as i have done throughout my career in Public Service. With diligence, impartiality, and with integrity. But equally important, i will serve with the utmost appreciation and respect for the hard work of the staff. Having served with them, i bring a new perspective to agency leadership. Furthermore, if confirmed, i will be the first africanamerican to serve on the commission. This historic fact cannot be ignored. 45 years after the establishment of this agency it is time that the agency designed to promote the integrity of our selection elections for the American People look a little more like the American People. Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member klobuchar, and members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to appear today, and i welcome any questions that you may have. Thank you. Thank you, ms. Broussard, were glad to have you with us today, lets go to mr. Cooksy next, sean cooksy. Good morning chairman blunt, Ranking Member klobuchar and members of the committee. Its an honor to appear before you. Id like to thank the chairman and Ranking Member for this hearing to consider my nomination and id like to thank President Trump for nominating me. I would also be remiss if i did not thank the Committee Staff and the white house staff who have helped with my nomination. I do not have an Opening Statement but i would like to acknowledge some important people. First and foremost, is my wife, ellen, she is my hero, and an unwavering source of love and support. I thank my parents, ken and Susan Cooksey for their patient love throughout my life. I am fortunate to be their son. I am also grateful to my two brothers, my grandmother, and the many friends and colleagues who have encouraged me along the way. Finally, im indebted to three mentors, the first is judge jerry smith of the u. S. Court of appeals for the fifth circuit for whom i was lucky enough to clerk after graduating from law school. The second is senator ted cruz who gave me my first job in the United States senate and has been a role model for me ever since. And i thank senator cruz for his very warm introduction. Lastly, id like to thank my current boss, senator josh hawley, who entrusted me to work for the people of missouri as his general counsel. It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve on his staff. With that, chairman blunt and Ranking Member klobuchar, thank you again for holding this hearing and i look forward to your questions. Thank you, mr. Cooksey, lets go to Allen Dickerson for any comments youd like to make, mr. Dickerson. Thank you, and good morning, chairman blunt, Ranking Member klobuchar, members of the committee. Its a privilege to appear before you this morning to discuss my nomination. Im grateful to the president for his confidence and to this committee for providing me with this opportunity. I am sorry were meeting by video conference. Its a wise and responsible decision. But something is lost when an event of this gravity is held remotely, and for me, personally, that includes the ability of my wife rachel to be present in person. And i understand that shes taken a break from her work as a child psychologist to view our remote feed. But the fact that shes not physically present does nothing to diminish my great appreciation and affection for her as a woman, wife and mother. Nor does it lessen the many sacrifices that she has made to support my career and to allow me this opportunity for Public Service. While our daughter is too young to follow todays discussion i hope that in the fullness of time she will be proud of her fathers career in the law and his service to his country. Its been a long road for me from californias Mojave Desert to this hearing. Im grateful to my parents kerry and gail and to my sister iris for setting me on the path and finally my thanks go to my colleagues at the institute for free speech for nearly a decade of warm ive spent the last two years balancing between two different roles. I represent clients in court, and advocate in public for a robust view of the First Amendment. In that capacity ive represented clients from across the political spectrum, including republican elected officials and donors, the Libertarian National committee, a progressive San Francisco Ballot Committee and the coalition for secular government. And i have authored scores of briefs joined by groups as diverse as color of change and the tea party patriots, the aclu and the cay toe institute. At the same time as an officer and lawyer in the army reserve i advise soldiers in the very different context of uniformed service. There, the rights of expression and Association Take a different form, limited by the needs of the service and the requirements of good order, discipline, and fidelity to the chain of command. From both roles i have come away with a Great Respect for the diversity, character and wisdom of the American People. And ive developed a deep trust in the vibrancy and resilience of american institutions. Congress created the fec to protect those institutions. In the aftermath of watergate as Ranking Member klobuchar noted, it established the commission to prevent corruption, and to enlighten American Voters as they choose our representatives. Its an important role, and it is a challenging one. Because all of us, members of the bar, of congress, courts and the commission, have worked hard over many years to find a delicate balance between a legitimate anticorruption and disclosure interests of the government on one hand and the First Amendment rights of the citizenry on the other. If the senate chooses to confirm me, i will work every day to provide the American People with an independent commission that faithfully administers the law as congress wrote it and the courts have interpreted it. And just as when i don or doff the military uniform i recognize ive been asked to apply my experience to a new role and ive been prepared to work hard in this agency. Im prepared to work with both my colleagues both here and those already with the commission and with the dedicated Civil Servants at the fec to explain a complex body of law, clarify it where appropriate, and enforce it in the fair and nonpartisan manner that congress envisioned. Thank you again for the opportunity to be here, and i look forward to your questions. Well, thank you, mr. Dickerson, and thanks to all three of you, we do have votes at 11 00. I think im going to ask my questions last, to be sure everybody has a chance to get their questions asked and im going to give the first set of questions that i would normally ask to mr. Cruz. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Congratulations to all three of the nominees. Let me start with just a general question. What, in your view, is the responsibility of the fec, and what would your responsibility be as commissioners . Senator cruz, im happy to take that question first. The responsibility of the fec is to fairly and efficiently administer and enforce the Campaign Finance laws as congress has enacted them and consistent with the constitution and the rulings of courts. My responsibility as a federal Election Commissioner would be to do just that, enforce the law, as i see directed by congress, and to do so in an impartial and effective and fair manner. Senator, i would agree with that characterization, and add that the appropriate discharge of our oath in that regard is intended to, and i hope will have the effect of increasing the American Publics confidence in our election process. And senator, i also want to conclude not conclude, but concur with my fellow nominees. Let me ask another question. In your judgment, what is the relationship between federal Campaign Finance law and the First Amendment to the constitution . Senator, i go ahead. Senator, the constitution, of course, is paramount law of the land. It always controls over any statutory law. And as an fec commissioner of course i would be bound to uphold the First Amendment, first and foremost, but also to administer the statutes as congress has passed them, consistent with that amendment and as interpreted by the courts. Is that right, i agree thats absolutely correct. I would add that as a doctrinal manner Campaign Finance law is an exception, albeit a well established and long running exception to the general prohibition of the First Amendment which is part of the why the fecs work is so important in explaining how all this fits together for people involved in the political process. Ms. Broussard, are you going to respond to that . I think she may be cut off. I think maybe the video is not working right now for her. Or the phone. So shell have to get back on. Right. All right, well, for ms. Broussard, i would ask that she answer that question in writing afterwards. Sorry were having technical difficulties, and thank you, mr. Chairman. Senator klobuchar. Ill defer to someone else until she gets back on, if another senator wants to go. Hello . Okay. Are you on, ms. Broussard . I am, i apologize, i think thats the technology that were working in today. If it makes you feel any better ms. Broussard at a judicial hearing recently mr. Zuckerberg had trouble getting on, the head of facebook. Dont worry about it. Technically challenged. Yeah, that happened. All right, so i wanted to first ask you, ms. Broussard, about the we talked about this over the phone as i did with the other two nominees, the weak disclaimer and Disclosure Rules on online political ads. We know in 2016, this was there were actually ads paid for by rubles, fortunately some of the companies have changed some of their policies so that has gotten better but i asked mr. Zuckerberg about this just yesterday. We continue to have issues with ads and including ads that arent looked at by human beings, and then get through and are not true. So i have this honest ads act, which is Bipartisan Legislation with senator graham, that would apply the same disclosure and disclaimer rules on political ads that we have for tv, radio and print. Could you talk about your views on this, and if you think the fec could also take care of this . And i think its important to look at, its not just candidate ads, its also issue ads. Ms. Broussard. Thank you, so the honest ads act would increase the definition of public communication to the online political spending. I see this as an opportunity to make these two increase transparency ads, the honest ad act, but also prevent the direct or indirect spending of foreign entities into our political discourse, which would provide a Greater Transparency to the American People. As it relates to the fec, if Congress Enacts this law it would be, of course, the responsibility of the commissioners to Work Together to craft regulations that would affect that. I think the greatest start would be a look at the rule making for the internet disclaimer rules that excuse me, are currently before the commission now and with the lack of quorum that rule making had an expaengs or an inclusion of the definition of a public communication, but the hont ads act would obviously take it into a broader perspective and work on a Greater Transparency. The way i look at it the commission could do some of this by rule and then the law would be very helpful to get into place. Mr. Dickerson, last year in a speech you argued that online political ads should not be regulated because they amount to such a small portion of political speech. I just want to make sure you know that as of 2018 facebook and google collectively sold over 16 million political ads worth over 3. 2 billion. I dont think i have the 2020 numbers on them. But what i do is a number on broadcast ads, 2. 5 billion in 2020, just to give you some comparison. So if you look at over 3. 2 billion on just two platforms, thats only three, two in the last three years, where are you on this still . I know we talked about this over the phone, but were just simply, senator graham and i are trying to make sure that the rules applied are the same on both tv, broadcast, as they are when it comes to these social media platforms. I appreciate the question. And thank you for the chance to comment on it. You know, the difficulty in this area is that there are two lines of Supreme Court precedents, as you know, theres one which says that theres a right of privacy of association and belief under the First Amendment, the other is that theres this need for transparency in certain types of political spending. That is a very difficult balance, and as ive said publicly and in our call, senator, you know, i do think that those sort of balancing questions are best left to the wisdom of the American Peoples elected representatives in congress. I have been skeptical of the difficulties of bridging that gap in a way that would survive judicial review. But i have made those comments in the role of an advocate, in public, and i do not consider it the appropriate role of an fec commissioner to stand in the way of legislation. Okay, thank you. And as you know before what will be before you if you get confirmed are this rulemaking so i hope youll remain open to it, and will take that same open view. So my last questions for years the fec has frequently deadlocked in votes about whether the agency staff should investigate potential violations. Many believe that these deadlocks have significantly impaired the agencys ability to investigate potential criminal activity regardless of the Candidates Party and enforce the law. In order to start an investigation four commissioners must find that there is a reason to believe there has been a violation of the law. And id ask each of you, if there are reliable public reports about a potential violation of the law, would that be enough to vote to open an investigation . If you want to all just go in the order you were introduced is fine, mr. Cooksey first. Thank you for the question, senator. I think the standard for finding reason to believe is obviously a vague legal standard, its one that cant be particularly quantified. Credible news reports could be part of the evidence for finding reason to believe, i dont know that i could say as a categorical rule they would always be relevant but i would keep in mind no including those and finding reason to believe. If you needed Additional Information beyond public reports would you support reaching out to federal agencies to get Additional Information . As you know theres a strong leadership between doj and the fec. Yes, senator, i think referrals from federal agencies are oftentimes a very credible source of potential investigations on the Civil Enforcement side of the fec. Okay, thank you. Mr. Dickerson, same two questions about yeah, i would completely agree with mr. Cooksey that, you know, the decision to find reason to believe is going to be case by case. But certainly reliable public reports of specific facts that raise that fall within the Legal Definition of a violation would be the sort of thing that would be strong evidence for finding reason to believe. And you would be open to getting Additional Information beyond public reports by reaching out to federal agencies to get the information . As i understand it, senator, other agencies in the fec are required by statute to coordinate in that manner. Okay. I would encourage that. Very good. Ms. Broussard, do you want to finish up here so i can turn it over to our colleagues. Everything my conominees have said, i agree with their consideration, if theres sufficient Information Available in the complaint, there is a reason to look further. And i would support any recommendations that come before me if i am confirmed with such information. Thank you. Thank you very much, thank you to all of you. Thank you, senator klobuchar. Well go to senator capito, followed by senator udall. Thank you, mr. Chairman, congratulations to the nominees on your nomination for this very important role. This i have a question really for all the nominees because as we know the fec is unique among independent agencies, Neither Party is allotted a majority of the seats. When the commission is fully its necessary to form a majority for the enforcement actions. This adds to the commissions legitimacy by ensuring that the fec cannot impose politically motivated penalties and i think thats great but it does present challenges. This structure, however, can make it difficult sometimes to resolve certain cases. So ill start with ms. Broussard, im sure shes seen this as a staffer, how would you work with other commissioners, including those across the aisle, to resolve the matters in a fair and bipartisan way and id be interested to know from your experience, with the fec, has this been an enormous problem, a small problem or how does it present challenges . Thank you for the question. I have as youve already said i have quite a few years of experience inside of the agency so i am familiar with this concept. First id like to say by restoring the full commission it creates a better opportunity for less of a fork or a deadlock. It creates the opportunity for consensus. It actually creates a better road map so that it requires that people truly communicate together for resolution so that the American Public can have full disclosure. I have a wealth of experience of working across the aisle because working for commissioner wother as one of his counsels, we had the opportunity to go down into the weeds of cases and sometimes when it might not work with one commissioner when you have six commissioners, you have an opportunity to reach to another person, and this builds consensus. This is truly having a full body of the commission is the perfect opportunity for people to Work Together, to find resolution. Thank you. Mr. Dickerson . I completely agree. As a big believer as a litigator in the adversarial process, the more voices and the better vetting you have of a legal question, the easier it is to find a nuance, and find agreement. You know, i would note that much of what the commission does does not fall victim to deadlocked votes, that even in contested matters, votes of the commission that do not reach the majority are the exception and not the rule. I would hope that will continue to be the case because i think the ability of the commission to give guidance to the regulated community is helped by majority formal rule making in a way that divided votes dont necessarily provide the same level of certainty. So i would hope to join my colleagues in reaching toward that goal. Thank you. Mr. Cooksey . Thank you, senator. I think youre right that the structure of the commission is somewhat unique and an important feature to ensure the legitimacy of the commissions actions. I think deadlocks are a consequence of that but i cant really improve on what my fellow nominees have said. I think often it is a mechanism that forces compromise, that forces consensus building and as someone who comes from a background in the legislative branch im very used to that dynamic, finding compromise and finding common ground. Its something i would be committed to doing if im lucky enough to be confirmed. Thank you, mr. Cooksey, let me continue with you, youve been counsel to senators hawley and cruz, you have advised them on election law and judicial nominations. You touched on it a little bit, i wanted to flesh out more how your legislative experience would help you in your role if youre confirmed. Thank you for the opportunity to discuss that, senator. I think my role as a legislative staffer would bring a unique set of skills and a unique set of experiences to the commission. I have a lot of experience working across the aisle, working with, in a small setting, with a small committee, a small number of Committee Members and forging a lot of important compromises, you know even if we cant agree 100 of the time, finding those areas we can agree and moving forward. I think theres also a long and important history of people who have gone on to the fec from a legislative background, like mine, and who have gone on to make very big contributions there. Thank you. Ms. Broussard, my last question to you is, and i dont know the answer to this, im looking for information from you as an informed staffer, are there a lot of backlogged cases because the commission has not been functioning properly . And when you have these kinds of situations where you do have backlog, whats been the experience with the commission to be able to prioritize certain areas, maybe its timeliness, maybe its, you know, amounts of dollars or the amount of people that it affects, how do you prioritize when you have backlog . My first question is, is there a large backlog, i dont know that, and if there is, how would you prioritize . Thank you. The quick answer to your question, senator, is, yes, there is a large backlog. This is public Information Available. The status of enforcement quarterly reports are published on the fecs website. It reflects that at present in the close of the last quarter there are more than 80 cases in the division, with 200 awaiting commission vote. The obvious answer to your question is there is a backlog. But what i think the intent would be if confirmed would be to prioritize those enforcement cases based on the statute of limitations, those matters that are within that fiveyear limitation of the statute, we would be able to assess the severity of the allegations, prioritize those that have a greater harm to the public, or are higher prioritized matters and compare that based upon the statute of limitations. And i would suggest that we working in consensus put those cases first on enforcement agendas. Is that something when youre seeking to prioritize you have to have agreement on, do the commissioners set the agenda, is that how thats done . As it relates to the enforcement agenda, its usually set by the chair of the commission which as you know alternates each year so whomever is the chair, would determine the agenda, so that would be a priority for the chair, which i believe, if confirmed, i would prioritize those matters that are if i were the chair, of course, would prioritize those. Thank you all very much, thank you and good luck, good answers, thank you. Thank you. Thank you, senator capito. Senator udall. Thank you so much, chairman blunt. And Ranking Member capito. I have closely followed the work Ranking Member klobuchar, excuse me, shelley, good to listen to you. I have closely followed the work of the federal election excision and have pushed for reform of the commission during my time in the senate. I believe that in its current state the fec has failed to uphold its mission, and im quoting here on the mission, to protect the integrity of the federal Campaign Finance process by providing transparency, and fairly enforcing and administering federal Campaign Finance laws. Congress created the federal Election Commission to fight political corruption after watergate. But more recently, partisan gridlock left the agency powerless to enforce the few Campaign Finance laws remaining on the books. In 2016 we saw record spending of millions of dollars in undisclosed dark money and weve seen the spending continue. And on and on. Without a strong watchdog looking over their shoulders superpacs and billionaire donors have had free rein to push the limits. I disagree proflound foundly with the Citizens United and to finance decisions. We have to acknowledge the court is not the only one at fault. The gridlock in the fec specifically, a bloc of gop commissioners who nearly always vote in lockstep. Thats also played a big role in undermining our Campaign Finance laws. For the last decade gop commissioners have blocked every attempt to close loopholes in fec regulations that allow dark money groups to flourish. The fec has failed to compel groups to spend virtually all of their money on political advocacy to register as pacs which would require them to disclose their donors. After 2018 we now know that there were efforts to secretly funnel Foreign Campaign money to candidates deliberately candidates violating our Campaign Finance laws i believe on fcc is crucial to maintaining the legitimacy of our elections and our democracy. Traditionally they have moved in bipartisan pairs. What troubles me about todays nominations is the posture. Republicans have a long senate and now theyre advancing republican nominees after the recent president ial election. While it is time for them to be fully functional again there is still more work to be done. Thank you for joining us today, you have built a career dedicated to Public Service. Given your experience, what would you recommend the commission to do improve its effectiveness and are there specific ways to increase election transparency . Thank you, senate ere. To answer the question regarding specific way its to increase transparenty, from a perspective of educating the public, we currently have a few webnars in place that gives our political sta stakeholders an opportunity for advancement. So i consider that a means for us to be able to advance the goals of disclosure to the government. I must say if i could, i apologize, but if i could ask you repeat the first half of your question again im happy to answer it, i apologize. Since the president ial election, President Trump made several claims of voter fraud, but judges have repeatedly ruled against the trump campaigns claims of fraud. G. O. P. Election officials in key states have also disagreed with these claims and just last week the Cyber Security and Infrastructure Security Agency called 20920 president ial election the most secure in American History. Mr. Dickerson, do you believe there was widespread Election Fraud in 2020 . Do you believe it is wrong for individuals to suggest there was widespread fraud without any proof. Thank you for the question, senator, i dont have any personal knowledge of any voter fraud in the recent election. I know there is ongoing litigate by various candidates about by consequences or outcomes of the election. I cant follow it or speak to it in detail. Thank you, senator, for the question. The only think i would add to the response is to remind the community that the fec has no role, whatsoever, in Election Administration or electoral outcomes. I think it important that the fec remain in the four corners set for it. But remember as officials in official positions when issues come up like this youre going to be asked and it is important that people speak truth to power. Thank you so much, mr. Chairman. Thank you, senator udahl. Senator warn ee eer has questio. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I am ready, i am here. I apologize about the sun coming in the wrong way. I want to pick up where senator udahl left off. And i have to tell you, mr. Dickerson, im disappointed by your last answer. You know the fec is part of the Election Assistance Commission, the dhs, all parts of the group that insure tensure the integrir election system. That goes free Voting Machines to political ad money. I know sitting in my position, with the opportunity to serve on the Intelligence Community if you asked us 30 or 40 days out from the election. People potentially showing up with long guns at our polling stagt stations with the potential many of our intelligence and Law Enforcement agencies that prior to and the immediate aftermath of violence at our polling stations, i think americans responded remarkably. We had record turnout. I think our poll workers and officials did great jobs. I think our secretaries of state, former secretaries of state on this on this panel with senators. You formally in both parties did a good job. Im frankly outraged that the entity responsible for Election Security has indicated that this was the safest and most secure election in our history. I think it was remarkable to me that the president then fired the head of cisle last night. I want to give you a chance to answer again. Do you not feel that the integrity of our election system is part of the responsibility of the fec and you dont want to weigh in on if the election that just took place was conducted in a safe or fair way or not. Whether or not these are questions for the governor. Senator, i appreciate the opportunity in particular because i share your concerns and those of the Intelligence Committee for foreign influence and meddling in american style government. I think my comment, which i do stand by, is to note that combatting that risk is a government wide mission. And as you pointed out, senator, there are other larger, more expert and better resources agencies, some of which you mentioned, but i add the Intelligence Community itself. The department of defense, the widespread abilities of the department of defense that are simply a better fit given the way i dont need a long i mean if you were to become confirmed you do not think the role of the commission sere to also try to support the integrity and the confidence in our election system . Absolutely i do. It s that undermined in the results of the Election Results im looking for an fec commissioner that stands up for rule of law and for speaking out when the integrity of our system is being attacked. Very briefly can i get the other two witnesses to respond . Certainly can. Im happy to respond, senator. I apologize for speaking over. I agree with you, senator. I think part of the responsibility of the commission sere to promote the integrity of the federal election process and protect the disclosure of information that also protects the American Public from being part of the election process itself. I dont have any evidence of voter fraud and we also have public reports from National Resources that we did not have any issues with this election. And it was quite a Fair Election and it has been mentioned that we had an excellent amount of voter turnout which i find extremely exciting. I think the opportunity for a commissioner to verbally promote the safety, quality, and responsibility of elections is important. Senator to be brief, i agree with what my fellow nominees have said. The Principal Mission of the fec is to promote traete transparen act accountability in the fundraising system, but also to promote the american confidence in our elections. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I dont often get to my rules committee meetings, i wont ask my last question, but i wont be invited back. Thank you. There will be a chance for questions for the record as well, senator warner, and thank you for your time today. Mr. Chairman i also want to thank senator warner for the work in the honest ads act. Senator hydesmith . Thank you, mr. Chairman and thank everyone for being here today. This is really important that we fill this position. As you will know the vacancy that has been there for awhile, and i just have a question on how will your personal views or previous work affect decisions that you might make on questions that come before you as the fec commissioner and how would you go about recusing yourself if you thought there was a need. Thank you, senator, im the person up here that represented clients most recently. In terms of the recusal process, i expect my clients my colleagues also filed letters with the commission outlines our responsibilities to recuse. I would adjust personally that i consider those rules a floor and not a ceiling. I could imagine indications in which the perception of entanglement would lead me to rescues even if the rurals didnt require it. That would be case by case as the rules arise. Thank you, i agree withdicke. As a commission tasked with promoting integrity in the election process, im not aware of any specific recusal needs, but im committed to applying the standard in an kpasting and careful way, and if ever there is a situation where i think it might be implicated i would consult with the career after it and my colleagues to make sure it is followed to the letter. Senator, the answer of the fellow nominees i feel is on point. I, too, have been in discussion with the council that would have the grounds for recusal. I think we need to be impartial, integrity, and if we had any questions we take advantage of the resources that we have available to us. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, senator hyde smith. If senatorloor leahy is availab well recognize him. Is this coming through . Yes, thank you. Appreciate it, having this opportunity. Each of you have been nominated to the fec at a kril kal moment, it was created to promote parties nation a democratic process. That is more difficult today when you have a president who almost every Public Statement or tweet under mines confidence in our election. He seeks to suppress legally cast votes, but his temper tantrum tweets aside, all serious federal and state Election Officials, both republicans and democrats, state unequivocally that our Election Results are legitimate. Nowly ask a question for each of you. Is joe biden a president elect of the president elect of the United States . Yes or no . Yes. Senator im aware that most media organizations have projected that former Vice President biden has won the election. Do you accept that . I have no reason to doubt it. Thank you. I agree with mr. Cooks, subject to the outcome of litigation. You have experience in litigation, as you know, virtually all of those cases have been swraun. But they brought someone from out of the state, a sex offender, to give some baseless charges, but Everything Else has been pretty well thrown out. President trumps own department of Homeland Security said this was the most security in American History of elections. And there is nothing in history showing that they lost votes or changed votes or that it was compromised. Do you agree with President Trumps department of Homeland Security . Mr. Dickerson . Senator in all frankness i have little exper seat in that area and my attention has been dedicated towards the hearing. I am not in a position to give my opinion. They have very few substantiated complaints of illegal votes, would you agree with that . Do you have any reason to disagree with that . I have no reason to disagree. He is an excellent attorney. I agree with what mr. Dickerson said, i have no reason or knowledge to doubt the dhs. I do not doubt the statement from the dhs. Thank you very much. Mr. Dickerson, you criticized state efforts of companies with foreign ties from contributing money to state campaigns as we do in vermont. I want to make sure there is not foreign interference in our elections. So i ask is it ever appropriate for an american candidate for Public Office to encourage or accept aide of a foreign state seeking domestic election . I would think that would be an inappropriate decision. Thank you, i mention that because of President Trumps statement during an intersflu 2019 when he said there is nothing wrong with taking information from a Foreign Government on a political opponent. I must admit that a number of my republican colleagues were pretty shocked at that. Now we, i worry because some republican senators that have echoed the president and unsubstantial voter fraud, their claims about republican secretaries of state, they said that everything was fair, but they faced Death Threats because of that so theyre saying because he is on a path to victory. If so, what is that path . Mr. Dickerson, do you see a path to victory for the president . Im not aware of one, but i have not looked at any of these cases in detail. Anyone else see one . Senator, as mr. Dickerson said im aware of ongoing litigation about the election and i have not followed it in great detail. Im not in a position to comment on the merits of it. Im a lawyer, i have watched it very carefully. The fact that it is taking so long to set up the process we have, having a new president come in, it is damaging to our security, to the health of our people, and suddenly as a new president is being inaugurated, we suddenly have an attack on one of our adversaries. Hour, the president s in the past whether or not they lost, they have always gone with that, with the new president coming in. And im syruply stating this as the longest serving senator. I have never seen this happen with republicans or democrats. We should be preparing in the time of covid some extreme threats. The chairman is aware of some of them, as am i, that we should be preparing for the transition. I appreciate you doing this hearing. I know we have a vote on the floor. You know where my office is. Yes, and your office looks great on the camera here today. Thank you, senator cortez masto. Thank you, chairman, and Ranking Member. Thank you all who were willing to serve on the commission. Let me follow up with senator leahys line of questions. Do you think there is a role to play in limiting foreign interference and federal elections. If the role is yes, what is that role . Thank you for that question, senator. It is a very important issue that i also share a concern about, so yes, there is a role in prohibiting foreign interference. The propi bags is long standing, it has been upheld by the courts. It applies across a large swath, and if im confirmed im committed to enforcing that as it as been a priority over recent years. I entirely agree. I think the expenditure proif i ambition has been a priority. Thank you, i have no disagreement from my fellow nominees. The statute requires theyre prohibited from making contributions in connection with our state and local elections, i agree with that and i will continue to work to enforce it. Thank you, so i know looking at the federal Elections Campaign act there is not a lot of qualifications other than the commissioner choosing on the bay suggestion of experience, integrity, impartiality. I appreciate the answers, particularly mr. Dickerson, that you gave to senator hydesmith on recusal. The fact that perception also has a an opportunity to recuse. Let me ask you this, mr. Dickerson. In the past several years you have advocated against the disclose act and every effort by congress to strengthen transparetran transparen transparency. How can i be ensured that you will be impartial when it comes to the issues of transparency and will make the decision to refuse yourself if appropriate . I am very grateful for the question, senator. I would anal guise to what happens when an advocate or a practicing attorney is nominated. As we do often at the commission. That is why it matters so much. As i often remind people, the First Amendment is only one part of the constitution. And i have been emphasizing that aspect in my practice for the last decade. But the role of an independent commission bound by judgment is a different one from that of an advocate in the nonprofit space. So i take that seriously and i recognize the role as representing clients. Thank you, do you think it is appropriate for an fec commission tore be vocal on media or twitter. Supporting a particular candidate over another . I worry about it a great deal. I think there has been unanimity among my colleagues. I think extracurricular advocacy makes that harder in the building, so while i cant speak for anyone else i would plan to avoid that outside advocacy. Thank you, i agree with what mr. Dickerson said. If im lucky enough to be approved, i would focus on not having outside advocacy. Thank you, we are voting, i have a couple questions and a couple comments. All of this is on your views of elections generally. There are First Amendment rights. You do know more and think more about elections than most people, but i dont think it is the job of the federal Election Assistance Commission to try to enforce the campaign fie lance law. I dont think they need to give opinions on how the law should be enforced. My thought on this is while there is rule making authorities, i think it is unreasonable to expect these agencies to constantly cross lines and say i know a lot about elections because im on the assistance commission. Im going to start making determinations about how Campaign Finance law is being enforced and i think generally you all all three wound up in that space, but your role is clearly defined. Mr. Brouchard says if Congress Passes a law you will follow that law. But understand iing your job, a how you do it, is important. If you are doing someone elses job, no one is doing your job, which is critical. What standard, if you have had a chance to think about this, what standard has to be met to offer an investigation. Lets just go in order here, what standard needs to be met before they open an investigation . Thank you there has to be a reason to believe that a violation could occur. And the reason i believe is based on sufficient evidence available. That is the standard that it is based in the statute and is also the regulations. Yes, that is correct. It is the standard, i would scribe it as the presence of credible evidence that a violation of the law has occurred. Senator i find myself in the position of agreeing with my fellow nominees. The fec is the subject of a great deal of litigation. The process requires someone to engage the commission. What is your view of that. All three lawyers, all three capable attorneys, what do you think should be the fec view of lit gauge and channelling a dually arrived at position taken by the fec. Thank you, i have thought about this quite a bit. I dont think that the commission does any favors when important questions and statutory law are decided on default judgments. I dont think that provides any clarity of the law. There is kaszs where i would not appeal going to court. In my experience i cannot think of any. And senator, my approach to this question is that Congress Congress created the commission as the commissioner of the federal Campaign Finance law. I have a strong belief that the rulings and the decisions of the fec as a drl smaller should be depended in court. As mr. Kidickerson mentioned within there may be cases that are valuable to consider each manner before me. Thank you for all joining us today. The record will be open until friday, november 20th. We had a slight disengagement, senator cruz had a question that you didnt get a chance to answer and there will be probably more questions to be filed, im hoping to moe all three of these this year. I would point out for the observations, that i would like to do this two at a time, one democratic, one republican. There has been two vacancies for two terms on the commission for them now. One by an independent. One by a republican. No nominee has ever been presented this committee. I would love to have nominees for that and we would quickly move on those nominees as long as they come at the same time. The committee is adjourned. The Senate Rules Committee just wrapping up. If you missed any of this you can watch more on cspan 2. You can also see more on our website cspan. Org. Coming up today at noon eastern, dr. Anthony fauci providing a update on the covid19 vaccine. This afternoon a senate panel examining the response to the pandemic. Watch that live at 3 00 eastern here on cspan 3. Weeknights this month, tonight, the National World War Ii Museum in new orleans hosted author neal bascomb to talk about his book. He described how a tip from a survivor and his daughter lead to the capture of adol adolf eichmann. Watch tonight at 8 00. Eastern and enjoy American History tv every weekend on zat. Cspan 3. Joining us is dr. Jeremy levin. Lets start with defining biotech. Good morning to you and thank you for having me on
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