July 17, 2012

United Republic Searches For Citizen Reporter To Cover Money In Politics At 2012 Conventions

United Republic, which sponsors Republic Report, has partnered up with Link TV to send one citizen reporter to the 2012 Republican and Democratic national conventions in Tampa and Charlotte on August 29 and September 3. The chosen citizen reporter will be a volunteer who will report on the conventions through the lens of money in
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July 16, 2012

LINKS: Expose The Fat Cats

Money in politics cat

iWatch: Vote set for quixotic bill that would reveal attack ad funders A bill designed to reveal the donors behind anonymously funded political attack ads is scheduled to hit the floor of the Senate Monday — however, the legislation has virtually no chance of passing, and even if it did pass, it still wouldn’t go
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July 16, 2012

VIDEO: After Attacking Opponent’s Lobbyist Fundraising, Dewhurst…Fundraises With D.C. Lobbyists

There’s a populist revolt against Big Money, and one place where you can see this on full display is in Texas. Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst is running against former Solicitor General Ted Cruz for the GOP nomination for U.S. Senate, and each side has accused the other of being beholden to lobbyists. Dewhurst, who is widely
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July 16, 2012

Ron Paul Org Urges Defeat Of DISCLOSE Act; Nonsensically Claims Disclosure Of Political Slush Funds Would Hamper Effort Against The TSA

Last night, Campaign for Liberty, an organization set up to promote Ron Paul and his political goals, sent out an e-mail to its list urging members to contact the Senate and urge the defeat of the DISCLOSE Act. The bill would force secret money groups to reveal donor information in the same way PACs or
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July 14, 2012

Scandal-Plagued Congressman Jerry Lewis To Give Lecture On “Ethical Lobbying” — To Audience Of Lobbyists

Congressman Jerry Lewis (R-CA) has faced years upon years of scandal: FBI investigations over corrupt land deals, ties to the Duke Cunningham bribery scandal, pay-to-play earmarks, and even a small controversy over his attempt to solicit lobbyists to finance his official portrait. Later this month, American League of Lobbyists is hosting an event on “Effecitve
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July 13, 2012

LINKS: “This Is The End Of Accountability In Elections”

Bloomberg BusinessWeek: Campaign Fundraisers: You’re Cordially Excluded There are many aspects of our money-soaked political culture to worry about. One that we seem to be getting awfully comfortable with is the off-the-record fundraiser, which consumes an increasing amount of presidential candidates’ time and energy. Raising money under a cloak of silence suggests that candidates have one
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July 13, 2012

VIDEO: Does Campaign Disclosure Deserve An Up Or Down Vote? Senator Mike Enzi Says: “I Don’t Know”

Hundreds of millions of dollars have been spent using undisclosed front groups to influence political campaigns and elections. This trend has been aggravated by the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, with many corporations preferring undisclosed nonprofits as the vehicle to deliver hard-hitting, and often deceptive, television advertisements against lawmakers. But a simple measure to allow
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July 13, 2012

In Georgia, Tea Party And Progressives Go On Bus Tour To Fight Lobbyists

We’ve been continually reporting on the tea party-progressive movement in Georgia to demand a lobbyist gift cap so that lobbyists can no longer give any gifts to lawmakers that cost more than $100 (Georgia is today one of three states where lobbyists can give unlimited gifts to legislators). At least 130 sitting state lawmakers or
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