Donations spotlight: Support CREW in its fight for a government that’s ethical, accountable and open

Note from the CREDO Mobile team: This April, CREW is among three amazing groups that will receive a share of our monthly grant. Funding from the CREDO Mobile community will be critical to the nonprofit as it uses bold legal actions and in-depth investigations to target government officials who sacrifice the common good to special interests for personal gain.

 Read this important blog post from CREW —Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington —  then visit CREDO Donations and cast your vote to help send much-needed grant money to the group to assist its efforts—and the efforts of our other outstanding April grantees.

As the most corrupt president in American history, Donald Trump has unprecedented conflicts of interest, resulting in regular use of the presidency for self-enrichment, constant risk that key decisions will be made in his business interests rather than the public interest, and growing consolidation of power by a small group of millionaires and billionaires. On top of that, the second Trump administration has set out to systematically dismantle the federal government and the services it provides to regular Americans and to eliminate the checks and balances that constrain presidential power.

Government ethics and accountability are a democracy issue. That’s why CREW is dedicated to taking high-impact legal action to enforce ethics laws and preserve American democracy in the face of authoritarianism.

In 2017, CREW sued Donald Trump on his first full day in office for violating the Emoluments Clauses of the Constitution, and we have been working hard to hold him accountable ever since.

Last year, we took Trump to the Supreme Court in an attempt to bar him from seeking the presidency under the 14th Amendment for his incitement of the January 6th insurrection. And although the Court allowed him to remain on the ballot, they did not dispute the finding in our case that he incited the insurrection.

Through aggressive legal actions, in-depth investigations, and detailed policy research, CREW is standing up to this administration to protect democracy and the interests of the American people. Some of our recent work includes:

• A suit against the so-called Department of Government Efficiency “DOGE,” the Office of Management and Budget, Elon Musk, Russell Vought, and the National Archives and Records Administration to get crucial records of what they are doing. In a key early victory, a court found they must obey records laws which will ensure transparency and accountability to the American people.
• Tracking foreign payments to Trump businesses, such as a Swiss bank’s purchase of millions worth of shares of Trump Social, which could allow foreign countries to improperly try to influence the Trump administration.
• Congressional testimony by CREW’s Executive Director on the importance of independent inspectors general to protecting the government from waste and fraud, in the face of the administration’s firing of these key watchdogs.

Working for widespread reform

However, defending democracy doesn’t just mean taking the fight to Donald Trump. It also means advocating for meaningful ethics reforms for Congress and the Supreme Court, standing up for the merit-based civil service, demanding transparency from the federal government, and tackling the corrosive impact of unchecked anonymous money in our elections.

We’re no strangers to taking on big fights, and that’s expertise that will prove invaluable during this administration. Thank you for supporting our work to make the government work for the people, instead of wealthy political donors or corrupt interests.

Learn more about the CREW’s core issues and recent victories here.