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Healthcare lobbyist Raissa Downs, co-founder of the lobbying firm Tarplin, Downs & Young, disclosed a $25,000 contribution to a group named “Stronger America PAC” in honor of Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine). The only problem is that no federal political committee reports receiving it.
The contribution, made on Feb. 24, 2026, was listed on Downs’ mid-year 2026 contribution report, filed on July 29, where she classified it as a contribution governed by the Federal Election Campaign Act. The only PAC with that name has been dormant since 2023, when it raised just $950. Furthermore, Downs’ FEC-disclosed contributions don’t show the donation.
However, there is a pro-Collins dark money nonprofit called Stronger America, Inc. based in Arlington, Virginia that is led by longtime Republican operative Paul Cooksey. As a 501(c)4, it does not disclose its donors publicly.
