May 10, 2012

Retired General Bill Looney Paid to Advocate for Colleges That Rip Off Troops and Veterans

The predatory schools of the for-profit college industry — Kaplan, Corinthian, Bridgepoint, and others — are on high alert. President Obama recently signed an executive order aimed at protecting veterans from bad behavior by these colleges. Speaking to U.S. troops at Fort Stewart, Georgia, the President called the conduct of these schools “appalling” and “disgraceful”
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May 9, 2012

Top 10 Fortune 500 Companies Spend 19 Times As Much On Lobbying As Bottom 10

Today, 2012’s Fortune 500 list was revealed. The list ranks the largest American corporations by revenue and profits, in an attempt to label the country’s most successful businesses. In an America where Big Money buys access and power in our politics, it’s important to realize that the companies that top the Fortune 500 list not
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May 9, 2012

As Latinos Suffer From High Student Debt, Congressional Hispanic Caucus Goes Golfing With Sallie Mae

On Monday, Latino members of Congress held their annual Congressional Hispanic Caucus fundraising event at a golf course near Andrews Air Force Base. The caucus serves as a forum for Latino members of both the House and the Senate, but often functions as an avenue for corporate lobbyists to funnel cash to lawmakers under the
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May 9, 2012

Why Are Student Loan Interest Rates Set To Double? Thank These Lobbyists Who Helped Kill The Bill Yesterday

On Tuesday afternoon, Senate Republicans blocked a measure that would have prevented a big hike for student loan interest rates. The legislation would have kept “subsidized Stafford loans at 3.4 percent for an additional year, rather than doubling automatically for new loans starting July 1.” While the vote yesterday was certainly a partisan battle, a
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May 7, 2012

Contractors Lobbying To Keep Needlessly Taking Millions Of Dollars Of Development Aid

The words “foreign aid” conjure up images of American tax dollars being sent overseas to populations far away from our shores. Critics of foreign aid see this as a transfer of taxpayer money to non-Americans. Supporters see it as a way for America to support struggling people in developing nations, promote our values, and protect
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May 7, 2012

Corruption Accounts For As Much As 14 Dollars Out Of Every Tank Of Gas

You pay a hidden premium every time they fill up your gas tank. The prices are high at the gas station, but part of the price you pay is directly caused by commodity speculators. And you can thank lobbyists for why the government has been unable to do anything to solve the problem. Over the
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May 3, 2012

Obama Administration Caves To Oil And Gas Industry On Controversial Fracking Rules

The American Petroleum Institute (API) is the biggest oil and gas lobby group in the country, spending millions of dollars each year advocating on behalf of over 400 corporations who work in the petroleum industry. So why is its president, Jack Gerard, speaking on behalf of the Obama administration? The Hill reports that the Interior
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May 2, 2012

Did Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp Use The Chamber Of Commerce To Lobby Against The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act?

Rupert Murdoch is “not a fit person” to run an international company, according to a report by a British parliamentary committee looking into phone hacking and other alleged abuses at News Corp. Critics have targeted British politicians including Prime Minster David Cameron for their ties to News Corp and its executives. But News Corp’s political
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