Trey Gowdy, the committee's chairman, said Republicans should not fundraise. Republicans stick with Benghazi cash

Republicans have no intention of listening to Trey Gowdy.

A number of Republican candidates and conservative groups have openly used the Sept. 11, 2012, attacks in Benghazi, Libya, as a cash grab. And that’s likely to continue despite a strongly worded rebuke from the new chairman of the Republican select committee assigned to investigate the response to the attacks.


Gowdy, a South Carolina Republican, commented on MSNBC Wednesday that he and fellow Republicans should not fundraise off “the backs of four murdered Americans” — creating a new standard by which the party can be judged and opening the GOP up to charges of past, present and future hypocrisy.

( Also on POLITICO: Behind the Benghazi select committee)

That’s put the party in an awkward spot. Republicans on Capitol Hill are eager to lend the looming committee investigation into the murder of four Americans an air of sobriety, dignity and seriousness. But political strategists are eager to mobilize the GOP base and amp up grassroots fundraising by capitalizing on the base’s outrage over how the Obama administration handled the attacks.

The 2012 consulate attack and accusations of a White House cover-up are catnip for grassroots donors and activists. And Benghazi — and the select committee assigned to investigate it — is a key part of the GOP fundraising and mobilization strategy. This week, the National Republican Congressional Committee rolled out a new fundraising campaign called “ Benghazi Watchdogs” — an effort by the aiming to raise money off Gowdy’s new position. Publicly available domain registration data shows that the site was registered Tuesday.

Other fundraising solicitations about Benghazi include:

A fundraising page from the NRCC with a photo of Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, accompanied by big bold text proclaiming: “Benghazi was a coverup. Demand answers.” — and asking for donations of up to $500.

A May 2 blog post from the National Republican Senatorial Committee titled “Dude, You’re Being Lied To About Benghazi.” The post was in response to former White House spokesman Tommy Vietor’s appearance on Fox News last week where he used the line “Dude, that was like two years ago.” It concludes: “Americans deserve the truth about Benghazi and it’s clear Democrats will not give it to them. Donate today and elect a Republican Senate majority.”

A May email blast from the conservative nonprofit Special Ops OPSEC Education Fund that asks for an “immediate contribution” of $25, $50, $100 or more to “hold Obama and Hillary’s feet to the fire until justice is done.”

A January email from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the aftermath of the State of the Union noting that Obama “failed to mention Benghazi, the IRS, or the NSA” and asking for donations.

A John Bolton PAC email from April accused Obama, Clinton and former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta of refusing to take responsibility for “leaving Americans to die at the hands of terrorists.”

An email from Senate candidate Joe Miller saying that there is “strong evidence that senior administration officials crafted a false narrative for purely political purposes.”

An email this week from Rep. Scott Rigell’s (R-Va.) campaign asking for “$5, $10, $20, or $50 to help keep him in Congress and hold the Administration accountable” that also asks “Why didn’t the military respond to the events in Benghazi Were there even military assets in the region available? If not, why not? Who made the decision not to send support? House Republicans are committed to finding out the truth about Benghazi.”

An email from House candidate Andy Tobin accusing Obama of “covering up vital information about what happened that night” and asking for donations.

Conservative pundits and former politicians like Mike Huckabee, Allen West and others have sent emails to their lists, according to the liberal watchdog group Media Matters.

Brad Dayspring, a spokesman for the NRSC, said that there hasn’t been a coordinated effort from the committee to fundraise off of the issue, even though his committee wrote a blog post with a fundraising solicitation about the hearings.

“Part of politics is fundraising. I think fundraising is a separate activity than calling attention to important issues,” he said in an interview. “Benghazi is going to be a topic of discussion because it deserves answers, and I think it’s important for both candidates and elected officials to discuss it.”

( Also on POLITICO: Nancy Pelosi leaning toward boycotting Benghazi panel)

GOP strategist Rick Wilson said that while fundraising off of such a sensitive topic needs to be done within the “bounds of propriety,” candidates on both sides of aisle aren’t hesitant to try to turn the “story du jour” into donation pitches, especially when seeking to round up small-dollar contributions.

“It’s a tragedy, a serious national security question that has to be resolved, and the administration owes answers,” Wilson said of Benghazi. “On the other hand, you’re going to see people on both sides use it to build mailing lists, build name ID, fundraising lists, etc. There’s a base level of inevitability.”

Democrats pointed to both the committee itself and the fact that it was being used as a fundraising ploy as evidence that the entire investigation was a political farce.

( Also on POLITICO: Hillary Clinton: Benghazi questions answered)

Chris Lehane, a veteran Democratic strategist, said that Republicans fundraising off of Benghazi could easily overplay their hand.

“At the end of the day you’re dealing with an issue that was a tragedy,” he said. “From a political perspective, that’s raising money from a situation where people representing our government were killed. It’s a politically perilous, treacherous thing to do.”

In a general election, he said, a Democrat could easily dismiss such a Republican as “playing politics with people’s lives.”

White House Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest on Wednesday jabbed the NRCC for its fundraising efforts.

( Also on POLITICO: Harry Reid: No Senate Benghazi panel)

“I think that the fact that the National Republican Congressional Committee is raising money off the creation of this committee is a pretty good indication of the political motivation that’s at work here,” he said aboard Air Force One.

And Republicans aren’t the only ones to use national tragedies for fundraising or list-building.

The nonprofit Organizing for Action has come under fire several times for using gun-related events to build their email list — sending emails on the anniversary of the Newtown shooting and the day of the Navy Yard shooting.

Republican officials defended their tactics as giving voters answers to pressing questions.

“The Obama administration has not been honest with the American people with regards to Benghazi, and if Nancy Pelosi becomes speaker the American people will never know the truth. Our goal is to hold Democrats in Congress accountable who vote against creating the select committee on Benghazi and who continue to try to sweep this controversy under the rug,” said NRCC spokeswoman Andrea Bozek.