Democratic lawmakers are calling for a federal investigation into whether personal information collected from Americans attending events tied to the nation's 250th anniversary celebrations could be used to help President Donald Trump and his political allies ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Representative Jared Huffman of California, the ranking Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, and Representative Joe Morelle of New York have asked the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to investigate Freedom 250, a Trump-backed organization that played a major role in organizing semiquincentennial celebrations this year. The request follows what Huffman described as a months-long investigation conducted by Democratic members and staff on the House Natural Resources Committee into Freedom 250's operations and its relationship with America250, the congressionally chartered commission established to oversee celebrations marking the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Newsweek has reached out to Freedom 250, the White House, the Government Accountability Office, Campaign Nucleus, Brad Parscale, Dyspatchit, Ace Specialties and WinRed for comment. House Democrats are seeking a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation into whether personal information collected through Freedom 250 events could potentially be used to benefit Trump and his political allies ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. In a letter sent to the GAO on September 8, Huffman and Morelle argued that data collected from Americans attending Freedom 250 events may have been gathered through systems connected to Trump's political network.
"Based on our preliminary findings, President Trump and his allies are in a position to use information on American voters, harvested with taxpayer money and government resources, in an attempt to tip the scales in the upcoming midterm elections," the lawmakers wrote. Huffman and Morelle have asked the GAO to determine where the information is stored, who controls it, and whether safeguards exist to prevent it from being shared with Republican political organizations or Trump-aligned political action committees. According to lawmakers Huffman and Morelle, Americans who registered for free tickets to Freedom 250 events were asked to submit personal information including their names, email addresses, phone numbers and ZIP codes.
The investigation alleges that those registrations were processed through Campaign Nucleus, a digital platform owned by former Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale. According to the lawmakers' letter, a second Parscale-linked company, Dyspatchit, handled Freedom 250's email and text messaging operations, while Ace Specialties—best known for making the iconic "Make America Great Again" hats—operated the organization's official merchandise store. The lawmakers say those activities potentially gave the companies access to additional contact, billing and mailing information from attendees and customers.
Huffman and Morelle's letter also alleges that Freedom 250 asked Americans registering for free July 4 event tickets to consent to receiving alerts and donation requests, and that registrants were later sent links to a Trump-branded fundraising page hosted by WinRed, according to the lawmakers' letter. The lawmakers have asked the GAO to examine whether safeguards existed to prevent information collected through Freedom 250 activities from being shared with political organizations. The letter argued that such information, if combined with other voter data, could become a valuable political asset heading into November's elections.
"A national contact list assembled at taxpayer expense, enriched with geolocation and behavioral data and scored for persuadability, is an asset of extraordinary value to a party heading into a midterm election," the lawmakers wrote. Freedom 250's privacy policy states that the organization collects personal information including names, email addresses, phone numbers, physical addresses and payment information submitted through its website. The policy also says the organization may collect geographic location data, including ZIP codes and other location information, and may share information with vendors and contractors supporting its operations.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
