Milwaukee City Wire

Despite Mandela Barnes's campaigning on a pledge to crack down on undisclosed funding in politics, the Democratic Senate candidate in Wisconsin is reportedly getting a major monetary boost from a liberal dark-money network.

The Family Friendly Action PAC, a group run by Democratic political operatives, announced Monday that $5 million of its $23 million election canvassing operation will support Barnes's race against Republican incumbent Sen. Ron Johnson, The Washington Free Beacon reported.

The super PAC is primarily funded by the dark-money organizations Sixteen Thirty Fund and America Votes, the story said.

"I believe we have to live our values," Barnes said on Twitter July 10. "And I believe we need to get dark money and corporate interests out of politics. So I’m not taking a cent of corporate PAC money. In the Senate, you’ll never have to doubt who I’m working for."

A major component of Barnes's political campaign includes his opposition to undisclosed political spending through dark money groups. His promise to "stand up to the corrupting influence of dark money" is listed in his "Plan for Democracy," according to his website.

In February, Barnes published the following tweet: "Dark money has no place in democracy."

According to Federal Election Campaign (FEC) records, The Family Friendly Action PAC received $1.4 million from America Votes and $285,000 from the Sixteen Thirty Fund, The Free Beacon reported.

Barnes has a history of getting monetary aid from outside groups despite his supposed opposition to dark money and corporate PACs, The Free Beacon reported.

On June 15, Barnes announced on his website that he needed help gaining positive advertising about his personal background out to the pricey "Milwaukee, Madison and the Green Bay media markets." The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel said that days later, a group called the Courageous Leaders PAC—funded by Barnes donor Karla Jurvetson—contributed more than $400,000 into ads promoting Barnes's exact message.

Barnes is the current lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, according to Politico.