Shakespeare’s Juliet told her Romeo, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”  The star-crossed lovers could not have known that centuries later those words would be invoked by one of America’s most controversial industries in a manner more worthy of Orwell’s 1984. A
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One of the many ways Big Money runs Washington is by enlisting former legislators to become lobbyists. These former lawmakers have a high level of access that affords their clients expansive influence. The Center for Responsive Politics and Remapping Debate have teamed up on a joint project to identify the new jobs of members of Congress
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Republic Report’s Suzanne Merkelson also contributed reporting to this piece. Last November, Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL) introduced the Outlawing Corporate Cash Undermining the Public Interest in our Elections and Democracy (OCCUPIED) constitutional amendment, which would effectively ban corporate money in the campaign finance system. “I introduced the OCCUPIED Amendment because …of…corporate control of our democracy. It is
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On Tuesday, the U.S. House of Representatives, by a vote of 303-114, passed a bill to block Department of Education rules that would help hold for-profit colleges accountable for abusing students and taxpayers.  The vote represented another effort by the House, under the sway of campaign contributions and intense lobbying from the wealthy for-profit college industry, to
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Last Friday at the California Republican Party’s spring convention in Burlingame, CA, Republic Report caught up with Congressman Darrell Issa (R-CA), who has been leading the investigation into the massive Countrywide bribery scandal. To Issa’s credit, his subpoena requests have revealed that members from both parties received heavily discounted mortgages, waived fees, and other special
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In the last month, a wave of corruption stories have rocked the Republican House of Representatives. It was revealed that Congressman Pete Sessions (R-TX) was among the recipients of a “Friends of Angelo” VIP mortgage from Countrywide. Republic Report also helped break the story that the wife of Congressman Buck McKeon (R-CA), another recently identified
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 The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is one of the most powerful corporate front groups in the country, working to pass its Big Business-written bills in state legislatures across the country. What is less known about ALEC is that it also has a federal government agenda, including advocating for lower corporate taxes and supporting dirty
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Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) just released new Defense Department data showing that the troubled for-profit college sector — which has left many American deep in debt — received half of all military Tuition Assistance dollars last year — $280 million out of $563 million for college grants for active duty military.  During their decade of explosive
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