Last week, we reported that Georgia tea partiers and progressives are uniting to demand that state lawmakers sign a pledge endorsing a $100 per-day gift ceiling for lobbyists in their state. Right now, lobbyists can spend virtually anything they want, and sometimes it’s not even properly disclosed. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports today that more and
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Today, the Paycheck Fairness Act — which seeks to help close the pay gap between men and women in the United States — suffered a defeat in the U.S. Senate. Although much of the opposition to the bill is being summed up as ideologically driven, some Big Money interests also oppose it — fearing that
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The Philadelphia Inquirer has a great article up which delves into the lobbying cash special interests are using to influence public policy in that city. Big Soda leads the lobbying pack, spending $238,921 in the quarter, six times the amount spent by the next competitor. Interestingly, the article notes that cable giant Comcast spent $32,985 lobbying
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In many places, being the leader of a chapter of a political party is an honor. It’s a position that you can use to advance your party’s values and goals. But Virginia Democratic Party chairman Brian Moran — brother of Rep. Jim Moran (D-VA) — is using his clout in a different way. In addition
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As we reported back in February, the over-the-counter drug association known as the Consumer Health Products Association (CHPA) spent $194,000 in January alone to battle legislation that would require a prescription for certain cold medicines so as to combat the spread of ingredients commonly used to make methmethamphetamines. The bill was eventually watered down after
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One way Big Money gets its way is by covering its tracks when it influences our government. Many local and city governments, for example, have very weak lobbying laws so it’s almost impossible to know who is influencing your local council member. The city of Galveston, Texas took a stand against that last week, passing
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It’s simple common sense that pollution is a bad thing. We all know that breathing dirtier air, drinking less clean water, and having an unsanitary environment is bad for human beings. But did you know that American taxpayers spend over $10 billion a year subsidizing it? Last week, Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN) and Sen. Bernie
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The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is the most powerful corporate front group you’ve never heard of ,or at least until more than a dozen major corporations recently quit in the wake of the controversies over it pushing the “Stand Your Ground” laws. ALEC lets corporations write model legislation that it then secretly ships to state legislatures
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