Overview
- A federal judge in Boston on Thursday granted ActBlue a preliminary injunction that bars Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton from pursuing his April suit or related retaliatory actions while constitutional claims are litigated.
- Judge Richard Stearns wrote that Paxton’s investigation, opened in December 2023 but dormant until a February fundraising surge for James Talarico, showed timing and statements that point to retaliation rather than consumer protection.
- Paxton’s April 20 filing accused ActBlue of violating Texas’s Deceptive Trade Practices Act by accepting donations via gift cards and prepaid debit cards and by allowing improper or foreign donations.
- House Administration Committee Democrats have sought documents from Paxton’s office and set a June deadline that his office missed, adding a congressional oversight track to the legal fight.
- The ruling protects ActBlue while the court considers its First and Fourteenth Amendment claims, with potential appeals, further congressional inquiries, and continued scrutiny of ActBlue’s donor-vetting practices to follow.