In the News
John Bachelor Show: IRS Tales: Bradley Smith
Independent Groups
Wall Street Journal: Did the IRS Ever Stop Targeting?
By Angela HuntThe Internal Revenue Service still isn’t processing tea party applications for tax-exempt status, according to an IRS agent recently interviewed by the House Ways and Means Committee.
SCOTUS/Judiciary
SCOTUSBlog: Symposium: Voters and contributors
By Tamara PietyIn McConnell v. Federal Election Commission (2003), Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote: “It is in the nature of an elected representative to favor certain policies, and, by necessary corollary, to favor thevoters and contributors who support those policies.” (emphasis added) That is a striking choice of words.Why the two categories? Is the phrase “voters and contributors” just a legal redundancy like “cease and desist”? Or does it describe distinct, albeit overlapping, categories? To the extent that they are merely overlapping, is a contributor someone or something entitled to the same constitutional solicitude as a voter? Or, to the contrary, does the Constitution reflect a concern for limiting the influence of wealthy contributors as Professor Lawrence Lessig argues in his amicus brief?
Candidates, Politicians, Campaigns, and Parties
NY Times: The Cash Committee
EditorialThe House Financial Services Committee has grown so large that a highly unusual fourth row of seats had to be installed in the committee room. Every term, scores of members, particularly freshmen, demand a seat on the panel — not because they have a burning interest in regulating banks and Wall Street, but because they know that they will be able raise much more money if one of the 61 seats has their name on it.
State and Local
Louisiana –– The Times-Picayune: Former Kenner Mayor Phil Capitano seeks to avoid ethics fee
By Adriane QuinlanFormer Kenner Mayor Phil Capitano says he didn’t know he had to continue filing campaign finance reports after he left office in 2010. He didn’t run for public office again, and he received no contributions in 2012.“I didn’t have any activity,” he said. “I didn’t write any checks or raise any money.”
Massachusetts –– AP: In Mass., political lobbying a thriving industry
By STEVE LeBLANCIn 2005, there were just over 800 lobbyists registered with state. By 2012, that number had soared to more than 1,600, according to an Associated Press review of lobbying records filed with the state secretary’s office.That’s eight lobbyists for each member of the Legislature.
Michigan –– Lansing State Journal: State to investigate Canfora, Wriggelsworth for campaign finance violations
By Lindsay VanHulleA complaint that her campaign did not include a “paid-for-by statement” on a printed flier will be reviewed, the state wrote in a letter that will be sent to Canfora. Two separate complaints were dismissed — that she allegedly offered rides to voters on her campaign fliers, which is governed under the state’s election law, and that she improperly used public funds by posing for a photo with Wriggelsworth in his office.“We’re happy and unsurprised that the accusations that the Freedom Fund has brought forward (have) been dismissed by the Bureau of Elections,” she said Wednesday. “As far as the ongoing issue, we intend to fully cooperate with any information that the Bureau of Elections needs from us and we are hopeful that this matter will be resolved quickly.”
New Jersey –– NY Times: The Sources of Christie’s Campaign Cash
By DEREK WILLISJonathan Martin’s story about Gov. Chris Christie’s re-election efforts noted that more than a third of the Christie campaign’s $8.3 million intake has come from outside New Jersey. But where are those out-of-state donors from, and how much have they given?
Virginia –– Washington Post: Va. first lady bought stock in Star Scientific
By Rosalind S. Helderman and Carol D. LeonnigMaureen McDonnell, the first lady of Virginia, twice purchased thousands of shares of stock in Star Scientific, a spokesman for McDonnell’s legal team confirmed Friday night. The stock was bought and held in the same time frame that she and Gov. Robert F. McDonnell were taking steps to promote the dietary supplement company.Spokesman Rich Galen said the first lady did not inform the governor either time she purchased stock, which Galen said she bought for herself and her children.
Virginia –– Washington Post: Attorneys for McDonnells to meet with prosecutors as key phase opens in gifts probe
By Rosalind S. Helderman and Carol D. LeonnigAttorneys for Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell and his wife, Maureen, will spend Monday locked in separate hours-long meetings trying to convince federal prosecutors that the first couple should not be charged in the gifts scandal that has dominated state politics.The meetings open a new, critical phase of the investigation, timed to help prosecutors decide over the next few weeks whether to file charges, according to two people with knowledge of the investigation.
