WASHINGTON, D.C. – If you want to entertain yourself with even more reactions to NEA’s endorsement of Hillary Clinton, head over to its Facebook page, which at last count had 874 comments – almost all of them negative.

It’s important to clarify what the union is intent on obfuscating. Even NEA directors are telling members, “Your dues do not support this. All campaign expenditures come out of the NEA Fund, not membership dues, two separate entities.”

THIS IS NOT TRUE.

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PAC funds are collected through voluntary donations, the bulk of which are made by NEA delegates during the four-day annual convention. That money is separate from the union’s general fund and is spent on direct contributions to federal candidates. Because of the votes this weekend, during the primaries money from this fund will go to Clinton’s campaign and no other. If you made no PAC donation, no money of yours goes directly to the Clinton campaign treasury.

HOWEVER, anyone with even the smallest knowledge of campaign finance knows that direct contributions to candidates are only a very small portion of campaign expenditures. NEA’s SuperPAC, member communications, independent expenditures and media buys that are not coordinated with the Clinton campaign ALL COME FROM MEMBERSHIP DUES MONEY.

NEA isn’t worried about whether you are a Sanders supporter, or how you will vote in the primaries, or even if you are a Republican, Green, Libertarian or Communist. The votes over the weekend authorize the union to spend the money from ALL MEMBERS to promote Clinton’s candidacy.

You don’t have to take my word for it. OpenSecrets.org has NEA’s PAC finances by two-year cycle since 1990. The most the PAC has ever raised through voluntary contributions in a cycle is about $7 million. In the 2014 cycle, NEA’s SuperPAC alone raised and spent about $21 million.

To repeat: If it’s a check to the Clinton campaign, it comes from voluntary PAC money. To use dues money for such a contribution is a criminal act. Any other campaign or communications spending by the union not coordinated in any way with the Clinton campaign comes from DUES MONEY and is perfectly legal.

My apologies for all the capitalization. Despite it, I’m sure I’ll have to do this again between now and November 2016.

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Originally published here

Published with permission