Republic Report attended a conference for “entrepreneurs” and small businesses today on Capitol Hill hosted by Congressman Tim Scott (R-SC). Although it was advertised as a lively discussion about economic policy, we witnessed staffers for Scott violently grabbing the mic from the only reporter who asked a critical question during the forum. Mike Elk, a
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In July, Georgia’s Democratic and Republican Party voters will get a chance to tell their respective political parties that there needs to be lobbying reform. Ballots for both parties will ask “questions about limiting the value of meals, tickets and other gifts lobbyists give to state legislators. The questions are nonbinding but will give policymakers
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Senators Joe Lieberman (I-CT) and Susan Collins (R-ME) are leading an effort to keep more secret money in our election system. Two weeks ago, a Senate panel approved a bill that would prevent the public from learning about which taxpayer-funded companies are funneling money into political campaigns. As Mother Jones’ Gavin Aronsen notes, the legislation
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Corporate front group the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has faced increasing scrutiny for secretly passing off corporate-written laws to state legislatures, including the controversial Stand Your Ground gun law. Late last night, Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world’s largest retailer and biggest seller of firearms in the country, announced it was suspending its membership in ALEC,
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We’ve warned before that 2012 will be the greatest election bought and sold. Now, Politico is reporting that outside groups are preparing to spend upwards of $1 billion this year to defeat President Obama and elect more big business-friendly lawmakers to Congress. To put these numbers in perspective, the Koch network alone — the political
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The corporate front group the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has come under increasing fire for secretly passing off corporate-written legislation to state legislatures. Yesterday, the medical device company Medtronic announced that it chose not to renew its membership in ALEC in 2010. Medtronic joins companies including Scantron, which announced earlier this week it was leaving ALEC, as well
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Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX) is one of Congress’s most loyal allies of Big Money. Earlier this year, he championed the “anti-piracy” legislation that would give the government huge internet censorship powers on behalf powerful entertainment and media corporations. As a result, Smith faced a primary challenge from a former local Sherrif, Richard Mack. Mack is
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The $35 billion for-profit college industry gets most of its revenue –for many of the big schools, over 90 percent of its revenue — from federal financial aid, a.k.a. your tax dollars. The industry has lobbied hard in recent years to avoid accountability for high-priced, low-quality programs, even after multiple investigations have exposed waste, fraud,
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