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ActBlue Needs to Learn Who/How to Target for Donations - Stop Going After Seniors on Social Security [1]

['This Content Is Not Subject To Review Daily Kos Staff Prior To Publication.']

Date: 2023-12-21

I’ve been a life-long Democrat. I’ve never voted for a Republican & as near as I can tell, I never will. That being said, I’m now retired, living on Social Security as my sole source of income, which means I don’t have a lot of disposable income. I was disabled before I willingly was forced to retire or I would preferably still be working, but have learned to deal with what life hands me.

Since being retired, I have learned to live within my lower, limited means; trying most of the time to not let the money run out before the month does. I have 1 bank card & if I can’t buy something with that, or make payments, I don’t buy something. I have learned to be financially responsible.

Keeping all this in mind, there are a few non-profits that I support monthly for causes that are important to me & a few LOCAL politicians that I feel can use my support, in addition to the President & Vice President.

When I started donating to political causes, I didn’t realize that the Democratic PAC behind most of them was ACT BLUE. They want your address & phone number but what they don’t tell you is that they seem to share that information with every Democratic candidate’s PAC that comes along & wants to raise money.

While I do understand the reasoning behind sending additional money to the Democratic party to flip seats & take back the majority (I get it, I really do), the relentless assaults I receive via text message & email from candidates I have never heard of in districts across the country who I don’t doubt can use the financial support are mildly, an annoyance at times, & at other times, just a royal pain in the Tush. The fundraising is often worded in such a cryptic manner that it’s often not possible to tell the name of the organization making the request, except that they want my donation.

I have tried asking them to identify themselves & the only organization I ever got a response from was Gabby Gifford’s Gun Control group — which was cogent enough to actually get my attention as it was answered by a real person. Surprise!

Less prolific but still irritating are the phone calls. Again, I understand, those of you who are making the calls, you are doing a job. But when you call me asking for $75 & I tell you I’m living on Social Security, that means I don’t have that much disposable income to give you. When you drop the donation amount to $50 & I repeat my response, I know you’re reading from a script, but the answer is still the same & I hope you’ll realize you may be in the same boat someday. Finally, I told the caller, “How about I give you my vote & my thanks for the hard work you’re doing & we call it a day?” Frustrated, she thanked me & finally ended the call rather than my hanging up on her.

The more frequently I get these un-named or unknown PAC fundraising assaults, the less likely I am to really donate anything to them. Deleted & blocked. Sorry, but stop assaulting my phone & going after my time & money.

ActBlue needs to come out from Behind the candidates & let constituents know they are the ones responsible for the fundraising. Let me know there is a responsible entity handling the fundraising for someone running for office. Otherwise, stop giving them my information. Period.

When I get e-mails, the connection to ActBlue is more transparent, which is appreciated, but still there. It’s usually on the bottom of the e-mail, right next to the unsubscribe link.

While ActBlue is capable of doing a lot of good, maybe it’s time for them to reevaluate their practices to see how they may be alienating their own base. Come up with a way to allow me, the donor to determine how many & which entities are given my information to avoid donor burnout.

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[1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/12/21/2212661/-ActBlue-Needs-to-Learn-Who-How-to-Target-for-Donations-Stop-Going-After-Seniors-on-Social-Security?pm_campaign=front_page&pm_source=more_community&pm_medium=web

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