July 9, 2012

Lunchtime Money in Politics Links: July 8, 2012

Mitt Romney Koch fundraiser

The Washington Post: Romney outraised Obama in June, $106 million to $71 million (Important to note that these totals don’t include funds raised and spent by outside groups like super PACs!) New York Times: Democrats to Ask for Curbs on Donor-Shielding Groups The Democratic Party’s Senate campaign arm will file a formal complaint on Monday with
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July 9, 2012

Corporations Line Up To Sponsor Meeting Of Nation’s Governors

Last month, we covered how the National Govenors Association (NGA) — a bipartisan policy organization for the nation’s state governors — has jumped into bed with the predatory for-profit education industry, taking thousands of dollars from for-profit college and education technology interests, both of which depend on government funding. Starting this Thursday, the NGA will
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July 6, 2012

New For-Profit College Lobbyist Is Long-Time Champion of Troubling Policies

The nation’s major for-profit colleges show no sign that they are ready to accept the inevitable: that in a time of enormous budget pressures, they cannot continue to siphon off 32 billion dollars a year in federal student aid for high-priced, low-quality programs that often leave students without jobs and deep in debt. They show
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July 6, 2012

Virginia Democratic Party Chair, Subject of Our Reporting, Ends His Job As For-Profit College Lobbyist

In May, Republic Report approached Virginia Democratic Party chairman Brian Moran and asked him if there was a conflict of interest between his role in the party — advancing the goals of President Barack Obama — and his job as a for-profit college lobbyist for the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (APSCU), which
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July 5, 2012

E-Mails Show Congressman Buck ‘Drone’ McKeon And His Wife Accepted Bribes From Mortgage Giant Countrywide

Armed Services Committee Chairman Congressman Buck McKeon (R-CA) is best known today as the weapon industry’s go-to lawmaker for expanding the use of domestic drones in America. But in 1998, the congressman accepted a discounted mortgage from subprime mortgage giant Countrywide as part of the company’s wide-ranging efforts to bribe public officials. (No one has
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July 5, 2012

Georgia Lawmaker Calls Lobbying Gift Cap Silly, But Gets Hundreds Of Dollars In Meals From Lobbyists

Momentum continues to grow in the state of Georgia, as both tea partiers and progressives are pushing hard to enact a lobbyist gift cap that would cap lobbyist gifts to lawmakers at $100. Recently, Rep. Don Parsons (R) called the cap “silly,” and refused to sign on to a pledge to push for such a
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July 5, 2012

Analysis: Opponents Of Health Reform Spent More On Ads Trashing The Law Than Obama Spent On Ads For President In 07/08

The New York Times recently ran a very important story showing that opponents of health reform, mostly industry-funded groups, overwhelmed the airwaves with negative advertising against the law. The reported numbers, $235 million against health reform versus $69 for it, only show part of the picture, since the Times decided to quantify only the money spent
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July 4, 2012

Rhode Island’s Disclosure Bill Signed Into Law; Will It Affect The U.S. Chamber?

Thanks to what is being called “Rhode Island’s DISCLOSE Bill,” Super-PACs and other political groups in Rhode Island are now required to report donors and expenditures.  Governor Lincoln Chafee signed the bill, known as the Transparency in Political Spending Act (TIPS), to increase the information available to voters. State Representative Chris Blazejewski, a co-sponsor of the
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