About CREW
Using bold legal actions and in-depth investigations, CREW targets government officials who sacrifice the common good to special interests and personal gain.
Americans deserve a government that is ethical, accountable, and open.
At CREW, we use aggressive legal actions, in-depth investigations, and innovative policy and reform work to achieve that vision. We take on big fights against powerful opponents, from the President of the United States to wealthy dark money donors. Despite long odds, we continue to have victories large and small, thanks to our innovative legal strategies and unrelenting dedication.
On Donald Trump’s first full day in the Oval Office, CREW sued him for violating the Emoluments Clauses of the U.S. Constitution, because of the unconstitutional corruption that would result from his refusal to divest from his business interests.
Our complaints have led to record-breaking FEC fines for dark money groups in the post-Citizens United era, and our lawsuits have brought about stronger enforcement of existing campaign finance laws, leading directly to more disclosure of dark money donors.
CREW ethics complaints have resulted in reprimands for more than a dozen Trump administration officials, including the Office of Special Counsel’s unprecedented call for Kellyanne Conway to be removed from federal service.
“We know that corruption and dark money in our elections are not merely about fairness—they’re also about who has power and influence in our government.”
We tracked more than 3,700 conflicts of interest stemming from Trump’s ownership of his businesses during his presidency, and we sounded the alarm on the steps he has taken to undermine accountability and checks and balances. We took hundreds of actions each year of the Trump era to fight his blatant corruption, and our work to push for accountability is not slowing down anytime soon.
While the most corrupt president in American history is no longer in office, CREW’s work is far from done — in some ways, we are just getting started. This is the time to push for accountability for Trump’s abuses of power, particularly in his last days in office and during the armed insurrection on January 6th, 2021, and to monitor how those in Trump’s orbit profit from his presidency in the private sector. We will also hold those now in power to appropriately high ethical standards to try to bring about an ethical government that works for all Americans.
Since CREW’s founding in 2003 as a nonpartisan non profit 501(c)(3) organization, we have achieved major successes holding those who abuse the system to account, compelling the government to be more open and transparent, and driving secret money and influence into the light. But we are not only focused on exposing wrongdoing. We are also deeply committed to reforming ethics and campaign finance laws, and work alongside policymakers to turn that into reality. We are working every day toward a government that actually works on behalf of the people rather than big donors or powerful industries. And we’ve been hard at work in recent years to lay the groundwork for key reforms to restore ethics and accountability to our government and shore up our democracy against attacks.
Now that the danger to our democracy is less imminent, this is a crucial time to fight for reforms that will prevent any future president from exploiting loopholes, profiting from the presidency, and damaging our democracy like Donald Trump did.
We invite you to join CREW in holding our government to a higher standard. We know that corruption and dark money in our elections are not merely about fairness—they’re also about who has power and influence in our government. We’re committed to changing that balance of power, so that influence rests with the people, not those with the most money or access.
We hope you’ll join CREW in the fight for a government that is open, honest, accountable, and committed to improving the lives of the people it serves.