"Looking for some fun at midweek? Join us and our friends from Public Campaign, Public Citizen, the Sierra Club and other groups this Wednesday evening to welcome a special group of out-of-towners to our nation’s capital.Our visitors are Republican state legislators from Wisconsin. You’ve probably read lately about the number they and Gov. Scott Walker have done on the Badger State’s public employees, stripping away collective bargaining rights that have helped thousands of teachers, nurses, construction workers and other public servants gain a slice of the American dream. Now these “worthies” are headed to Washington to be rewarded by their corporate sponsors. We thought it would be nice to spoil their fun, or at least embarrass them a little.
The BGR lobbying firm, one of Washington’s most influential, is hosting a $1,000 per person reception to benefit Wisconsin’s Republican officeholders and candidates. The featured guests, according to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, will be GOP state Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald, Rep. Scott Suder, Sen. Glenn Grothman, Sen. Alberta Darling, and Rep. Robin Vos.
We and our activist friends were somehow left off the guest list for this 5:30 p.m. event at BGR’s offices in the Homer Bldg., 601 13th St., NW. So some of us will gather on the sidewalk outside, starting around 5, to provide our own welcome. We won’t have any of the Chardonnay and stale canapes that no doubt will be served inside but we’ll offer up some fresh observations about the buying and selling of political influence in Washington, Madison and capital cities all across the country.
Hope you can join us."
Remember, "voting turnout and activism means spreading the word!"
Vulnerable Incumbents, Promising Upstart Candidates Reap Financial Benefits From Political Brethren - OpenSecrets Blog | OpenSecrets
Top congressional leaders are expected to help bankroll less-notable politicians in hotly contested races. And practically any member of Congress who wants to affect the election landscape can use their leadership PAC or campaign committee to guide on money to the front lines of critical contests.
Lessig is co-founder of Change Congress and his keynotes have been called "legendary." This keynote was presented to luminaries of the campaign-finance reform world and top Obama administration officials.
Obama's Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel is not known as a shrinking violet. He's been described as rude, crude, aggressive, mean-spirited, dogmatic and loquacious. Passive, quiet, inconspicuous? Not so much.
So how is it that Emanuel served on the Board of mortgage lending giant Freddie Mac for 14 months without making any noticeable mark, while at the same time reaping huge financial rewards? And why did the normally obtrusive Emanuel keep his lips zipped when presented with an illegal accounting scheme designed to defraud Freddie Mac investors?
Before its portfolio of bad loans helped trigger the current housing crisis, mortgage giant Freddie Mac was the focus of a major accounting scandal that led to a management shake-up, huge fines and scalding condemnation of passive directors by a top federal regulator.
One of those allegedly asleep-at-the-switch board members was Chicago's Rahm Emanuel—now chief of staff to President Barack Obama—who made at least $320,000 for a 14-month stint at Freddie Mac that required little effort.
"Little effort" may be an understatement. The Freddie Mac board does most of its work in committees. According to the Tribune, there is no documented evidence Emanuel even served on a committee.
But it gets worse.
On Emanuel's watch, Freddie Mac hatched an accounting scheme – reviewed by the board –to defraud investors by artificially inflating the value of the company in order to pay out big bonuses to executives. The company was also slapped with a $3.8 million fine by the Federal Election Commission for using corporate funds to bankroll political fundraisers. In fact, after Emanuel finished his 14-month stint at Freddie, the company held one of these illegal fundraisers on his behalf!
And this is the man we're supposed to trust operating the levers of power at the Obama White House?
Of course, Judicial Watch is trying to dig up as much information as possible on the political corruption that enabled Fannie and Freddie (and their congressional co-conspirators) to operate above the law.
In fact, one Judicial Watch Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request relates directly to the political fundraising scheme that resulted in the FEC fine referenced above. On December 18, 2008, Judicial Watch filed a FOIA request with the Treasury Department regarding political contributions and political contribution policies at Fannie and Freddie.
We are looking into the deliberate campaign by these two agencies to buy political protection on Capitol Hill (mostly from liberals) so that they could continue on their reckless programs to hustle "subprime" mortgages to unqualified homebuyers.
I'll continue to keep you posted on further developments.
>All Things Reform Mobile: allthingsreform.mofuse.mobi >Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (not toll-free) >US House/Senate Mobile: bit.ly/members >Contact your reps tips: bit.ly/dear >Shortened All Things Reform URL: bit.ly/dw
Thanks to loopholes in campaign financing and spending rules, Sen. John McCain may benefit from accepting federal funds instead of being limited by the decision. (By Jeff Swensen -- Getty Images)
Washington Post Staff Writer Wednesday, September 17, 2008; Page A04
Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama put his fundraising machine on display in Beverly Hills last night, tallying more than $9 million at star-studded events that included a $28,500-per-person dinner and a private concert by Barbra Streisand.
Obama's record $66 million haul in August and the money that poured into his campaign last night have helped feed the impression that the senator from Illinois will have a substantial financial advantage over Republican Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) heading into the final weeks of the presidential campaign. But presidential strategists and campaign finance experts yesterday expressed surprise that Obama's decision to become the first presidential nominee to swear off public funds for the general election -- and McCain's decision to finance his bid with a single $84 million infusion from the federal government -- has not given Obama a clear financial edge.
"Sen. Obama's advantage is not emerging as people thought," said Lawrence M. Noble, a former Federal Election Commission general counsel and an Obama supporter.
The reason has less to do with Obama's fundraising -- he has now raised $440 million, more than any presidential candidate in history -- than it does with McCain's ability to maneuver within the confines of the Watergate-era funding program, Noble said.
With backing from the Republican National Committee, McCain has taken advantage of loopholes such as "hybrid" television advertisements and joint fundraising committees that may keep him close to financial parity with Obama.
Every four years, corporations and other major donors exploit a loophole in campaign finance law and give millions to sponsor the national party conventions. During the conventions, they throw lavish parties for our representatives in Congress, making sure their interests are heard loud and clear.
They don't do this for nothing. In return for mega-donations, host committees for both parties offer corporations and other donors prime advertising space at the convention and exclusive access to influential politicians. The greater the contribution, the greater the advertising and access opportunities.
Elected officials are supposed to represent us, the people whose votes they depend on. We should be the ones talking to them at the 2008 conventions. Our voices are the ones they should hear loud and clear. We can make ourselves heard now by sending a clear message: members of Congress should put voters first, not big donors.
Government reform orgs. deliver news on major events within their areas of expertise. From: Party Time
The Sunlight Foundation has introduced Party Time, an online database of campaign fundraising parties, which occur in conventions, near the capitol or anywhere else, anytime of the year. The hundreds of parties for the candidates attending the upcoming Democratic and Republican conventions are already included.
You can search by several categories. A copy of the actual invitation is given for each party in the database. And, if you know of a party, please contribute it to Party Time; the database goes back many years.
.>All Things Reform Mobile: allthingsreform.mofuse.mobi >Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (not toll-free) >US House/Senate Mobile: bit.ly/members >Contact your reps tips: bit.ly/dear.
We periodically receive newsletters from a wide variety of government reform news sources; the organizations focus on only the major events within their respective areas of expertise. Here is a selection from a recent email newsletter: From Democracy 21 http://bit.ly/4Eq2hb
Top donors slice gifts to political groups since '04 By Matt Kelley and Fredreka Schouten of USA Today July 22, 2008
[...] "Despite some of the candidates throwing cold water on outside groups, there is no way they can stop them," says campaign-finance lawyer Kenneth Gross. "This can happen and will likely happen late in the game."
Some help in other ways. Three of the six top GOP donors are raising money for McCain. None of the top six Democrats is an Obama fundraiser.
. --- > All Things Reform Mobile: allthingsreform.mofuse.mobi > Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (not toll-free) > US House/ US Senate Mobile: bit.ly/members > Contact your representative tips: bit.ly/dear --- .
We periodically receive newsletters from a wide variety of government reform news sources. These focus on only the major events within their respective areas of expertise. Here is a selection from a recent email newsletter: From Campaign Legal Center http://bit.ly/4bb0er
The Star Ledger: It's Party Time in DC Jul 19, 2008
[...] Under the ethics code adopted in January 2007, House members could no longer attend parties thrown in their honor by lobbyists during the national party conventions. Such lavish parties were supposedly intended to recognize a member for his or her accomplishments. The honorees undoubtedly thought they were worth it.
In reality, the parties were lucrative fundraisers. And, of course, the House member would always remember who had been so thoughtful - and generous.
The we-won't-do-that-anymore policy was clearly enunciated 18 months ago and repeated a year ago when Democrats were proudly wearing the white hats belonging to ethics reformers. But as this summer's political conventions approach, those hats have gotten a lot grayer.
The House ethics police say the ban applies to parties thrown for individual members. It doesn't extend to parties for a group of House members. That's quite a loophole.
A bunch of good government groups - Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Common Cause, Public Citizen, U.S. PIRG and Campaign Legal Center - are urging politicians to do the right thing. We wish them good luck with that one. [...]
. --- > All Things Reform Mobile: allthingsreform.mofuse.mobi > Capitol Switchboard: 202-224-3121 (not toll-free) > US House/ US Senate Mobile: bit.ly/members > Contact your representative tips: bit.ly/dear --- .
Public Campaign Action Fund is running a Voter Pledge drive for clean elections for federal candidates. Clean elections is another term for volunteer public financing of candidate campaigns. It can save the candidates from "dialing for dollars" every day in order to keep their campaign money flowing; this allows them to focus their time and energy on their important issues they want to share with the voters.
Please sign the 2008 Voters First Pledgeright now, at Public Campaign-- you can help increase the pressure on lawmakers and candidates to back this needed reform. Thank you
Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW) has the latest video on the legendary "PigFoot", their mascot. Here, he tries to give their 2007 Porker of the Year award to US Rep. John Murtha (Dem-PA) during his annual dinner with defense contractors, many of which he gives earmarks to in exchange for campaign contributions!
I just stumbled upon a video clip on Silobreaker of a telephone conversation Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton had with a fundraiser. The caption below the video player states "Hiliary Clinton Caught violating Campaign finance laws". Frankly, I can't catch the law-breaking activity mentioned in the conversation; it apparently is a gala near Hollywood to honor her husband and previous president Bill Clinton that would benefit Hillary's campaign; she says on the phone that she as a candidate was briefed on the gala's details, and that her future thoughts will be conveyed to the fundraisers through her campaign helper.
Candidates, and ultimately voters, are already enjoying clean elections in Maine. The first state in the nation to bring this campaign finance reform to state offices, it has been successfully administered since 1996. This local newspaper story is about a current state representative candidate- what qualifies him for the program, and how he is free from big money from special interests as reflected by his campaign issues and work.
Public Campaign posted today that, now that Pres. Bush has recognized John McCain as the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, he has forwarded his "list" of big money donors he enjoyed when he was a candidate. This is quite disturbing, as we can see the corruption and secrecy from the administration that is inherent in exuberant campaign fundraising. George W. Bush put the F in fundraising by encouraging and rewarding the bundling of contributions from politically active companies.
Where has the R gone in reformer for McCain? The following several months of candidacy shall reveal the truth.
Lobbyists for foreign governments raise money, get meetings By Will Evans and Avni Patel ABCNews.com February 1, 2008
Top fundraisers for the presidential campaigns of Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain lobby on behalf of foreign governments, and in some cases, helped their clients gain access to the senators, according to a CIR and ABCNews.com investigation.
USA Today newspaper has a special graphical webpage of lobbyist-hosted fundraisers at town houses and offices near the U.S. Capitol.
In the last decade, 18 lobbying organizations have purchased town houses or leased office space near the U.S. Capitol, joining more than a dozen others that had operated there for years. At least 214 members of Congress held fundraisers at these properties last year through November, often for free or at cut-rate prices. Events listed here benefited lawmakers' candidate committees or political action committees they head, or both. This is a partial list, since many events are not reflected in federal campaign records.
If a lawmaker has a bill coming up for a vote, and the bill concerns a lobbyist hosting that lawmaker's campaign fundraiser, that would be a conflict of interest, no?
The Gallup Poll company just concluded a political reform survey about whether presidential candidates should accept campaign contributions from lobbyists. Even though the question was asked in different ways, the vast majority, around 80%, of adults said 'no'. It looks like most respondents, whether Republican, Democrat or Independent, saw the ethical implications of such donations.
If a Congressional candidate accepted financial contributions from a lobbyist, then, if he won, was visited by that same lobbyist about a bill up for a vote, you would see the obvious conflict of interest. Now, take this one step further: if a union paid that lobbyist to work for that bill, the conflict of interest problem would affect the union. So, it is in the interest of the lobbying firm not to not engage in financial campaign contributions if they want to professionally (and ethically) represent their future clients.
Stopping lobbyist "bundling" of financial contributions from others is currently under legislation-- it's awaiting the President's signature for approval. Lobbyist individual contributions, however, continue unabated. Democratic presidential candidates Edwards and Obama have publicly committed to not accepting campaign contributions from lobbyists. Let us hope more candidates see the light and do the same thing soon.
There is a dangerous lack of trust between the American people and our President. For many quarters of the political community, Bush has not earned his credentials since he first entered office in 2001. It is only after several years of kowtowing to his major campaign fundraisers at the highest levels of government that most of the nation is now at odds with him.
In effect, Bush's administration is a living case of the campaign finance abuses of his electoral campaigns for 2000 and 2004. In an attitude of a free-wheeling cowboy, he gave special names to his largest campaign donation bundlers (those who marshalled big money donations personally). In an attitude of cronyism, he enlisted these bundlers and other political hacks to high government positions. And in an attitude of executive priviledge, Bush is now justifying his cronies 'till they are thrown out of office.
There is now a year and a half left in our President's last term of office. Will the American people justify their sense of citizenship and patriotism and lose all trust with him? Only time will tell.
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