Exactly one year ago the Sunlight Foundation unveiled our Political Action Committee (PAC) Name Generator and today we revisit it with some shocking revelations. The project showcased the absurdity of the naming culture for these political funds. The agreeable names shield them from scrutiny - who isn't in favor of common sense, truth or America? As if our anemic disclosure laws and the impotent Federal Election Commission do not allow for enough obfuscation!

It was an enormously fun project to work on and we weren't the only ones who enjoyed playing with it - we ended up getting hundreds of thousands of visitors. As the anniversary approached we decided to research if any actual PACs had adopted one of the meaningless, random names we created. So we ran every possible result from our generator against the list of all 41,203 committees scraped from the Center for Responsive Politics.

At first this seemed a rather silly exercise because our beloved generator includes some rather unlikely results such as "Honest Workers for Snow Days," "Taxpayers for Twirling Towards Freedom" and the perfectly concise "Just Another Really Really Well Funded Grassroots Organization for Short, Pithy and Informative Names for Political Action Committees."

Yet, to our surprise, we found dozens of matches. In fact, based on filing at the FEC, many of these all-American groups were created after we launched our PAC Name Generator! To the right of this text you'll see screenshots of their official filing documents with the date highlighted - each organization's name is also a possible result from the generator. To anyone who wants to check our work or happens to enjoy scrolling, here are all possible name generator results.

A tool that we created to shed light on how these organizations cower behind a circus of patriotic gobbledygook is fueling the creation of even more murky committee names! What hath we wrought!

Special thanks to Ethan Phelps-Goodman for pulling the real committee names and to Jeremy Carbaugh for matching them up with fake names. Below is the widget and embed code for those who wish to provide inspiration to the unimaginative PAC treasurers around the country:

<iframe src="http://pacgenerator.sunlightfoundation.com/embed" height="260" width="560" style="overflow: hidden; border: 0; margin: 10px 0;" scrolling="no" seamless></iframe>

As the summer of the Democrats' discontent winds to a close, the head count for health care reform in the Senate begins in earnest. One of the key Democratic senators on the fence is Sen. Blanche Lincoln, a member of the Senate Finance Committee and one of the most vulnerable Democrats in the 2010 election. Lincoln jumped into the news today with a quote to a reporter stating her opposition to a public option plan in a health care reform bill. "I would not support a solely government-funded public option. We can't afford that," Lincoln said. The senior Arkansas senator is also the 2nd highest recipient of campaign contributions from the health industry among senators this year.

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Lincoln has received $325,350 in contributions from the health industry, as of June 30. The large amount in contributions underlies a constantly shifting position by the senator on health care reform.

One of Lincoln's biggest contributors this cycle is the insurance giant Blue Cross Blue Shield. The company's political action committee and employees have combined to give the senator $29,500 this year alone. Blue Cross Blue Shield and their parent company Wellpoint are vocal opponents of the inclusion of a public option plan in any health care reform bill. Blue Cross Blue Shield is the dominant insurer in Arkansas holding a 75 percent market share.

Blue Cross Blue Shield does not need to only rely on campaign contributions to reach Sen. Lincoln, as they retain Lincoln's former top health care policy adviser as a lobbyist. Elizabeth Barnett worked for Lincoln from 2000 to 2007 before leaving to become the top Democratic lobbyist for Blue Cross Blue Shield. Earlier this year, Barnett left Blue Cross to work for Avenue Solutions, where she retains Blue Cross Blue Shield as a client. Avenue Solutions' profile of Barnett notes that she "had primary responsibility for representing [Blue Cross Blue Shield] and its 39 member plans before the Senate Finance Committee, Senate Democratic Leadership, and other key Senate committees and offices." Barnett also represents other health industry organizations including UnitedHealth Group, Aetna, Bravo Health, Healthcare Leadership Council, Medco and the National Health Policy Group.

Barnett is not the only former Lincoln staffer working as a lobbyist for the health industry. Lincoln's former chief of staff Kelly Bingel is a lobbyist specializing in health care at Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti Inc, the lobbying firm of Sen. Max Baucus' former chief of staff David Castagnetti. Bingel represents a who's who of the health care industry including America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) and Pharmaceutical Researchers & Manufacturers of America (PhRMA). AHIP and PhRMA have been largely supportive of health care reform this year. PhRMA, in particular, has supported the current legislation with positive advertising after receiving concessions from the White House and the Senate Finance Committee. Bingel also represents the Business Roundtable, a group that has voiced opposition to health care reform.

Throughout this year, Lincoln has benefited from countless fundraisers thrown by lobbyists. The Party Time database lists one fundraiser thrown by health care lobbyists for Lincoln. On July 24, Ernst & Young feted Lincoln with a fundraiser hosted by health care lobbyists Nick Giordano (formerly of Sen. Baucus' staff), Dick Meltzer (since moved on to Speaker Pelosi's staff), LaBrenda Garrett-Nelson, Holly Bode, Francis Grab, Dave Koshgarian and Jeff Petrich. Contributions from this fundraiser will not be publicly available until the third quarter finance reports are filed.

update: post edited.

CQ Politics reports that health care related PACs accounted for the top or second highest source of contributions for 15 of the top 18 congressional leaders in the House involved in the health care debate.

Apparently, the $80 billion cost savings that the pharmaceutical industry agreed to with the Obama administration came with a price. In return, the White House promised to protect the industry from further attempts to extract cost savings from them including allowing the government to negotiate drug prices. Now we know what those trips to the White House were all about.

The House Selecte Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming is investigating the forged letters sent to three congressmen by a grassroots lobbying firm on behalf of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCCE). ACCCE has been trying to distance themselves from Bonner & Associates, the firm in question, and has denounced the letters. In a new letter sent by Chair Ed Markey, ACCCE is questioned as to why they did not act on the forged letters after they discovered their existence on June 24, two days prior to the vote on the cap and trade bill.

A new hire by the State Department may exploit a loophole in the administration's lobbying ban.

The Washington Post has a useful interactive graphic to compare the various versions of health care reform in Congress.

This past weekend Sen. Max Baucus' political action committee (PAC) hosted a three-day retreat fundraising event at the Big Sky Resort with "fly-fishing in three nearby rivers, golfing on an Arnold Palmer-designed course, horseback riding and hiking, family fun and gorgeous scenery." The entrance fee for the event was $2,500 per individual and $5,000 for a PAC. While the roster of interest groups, lobbyists and other individuals in attendance is unknown at this time, we do know who was a no-show: Max Baucus.

According to the National Journal's Under the Influence blog, Sen. Baucus announced his intention to avoid the event before the fundraiser commenced to "tend to faltering bipartisan negotiations over health care reform legislation." The senator will not only be missing those who want his ear on a variety of issues coming before his powerful committee -- cap and trade and health care -- he'll also be missing a protest held by advocates for single payer health care.

Despite missing this fundraiser, the Montana senator's Glacier PAC has already pulled in large sums of money from the health and insurance sector and lobbyists representing both sectors. Since January, Baucus' Glacier PAC has raised $99,500 from health and insurance PACs and lobbyists representing health and insurance organizations. This represents one-third of all contributions to Glacier PAC this year.

Many of these contributions were filed with his committee in the days soon after other fundraising weekends in the mountains of Montana. Over the weekend of February 6, Baucus hosted his Eigth Annual Ski and Snow Mobile Weekend, a fundraising weekend get-away much like the July 31-Aug 2 event that Baucus skipped. Contributions that were filed on February 16 include four health care PACs and two lobbyists for health care companies. The PACs included National Emergency Medicine PAC, Sanofi-Pasteur, American College of Cardiology and American College of Radiology Association. Three out of these four PACs contributed the maximum $5,000 with Sanofi-Pasteur contributing $2,500. The lobbyists included Tracy Spicer (Aetna, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Bravo Health, Healthcare Leadership Council, Heritage Services, Medco, National Health Policy Group, Travelers Companies, UnitedHealth Group) and William Oldaker (Adventist Health Systems, Healthcare Quality Strategies, Intermountain Health Care, Iowa Foundation for Medical Care, IPRO, Lumetra, Mpro, Ohio KePRO, Parexel International, TMF Health Quality Institute, West Virginia Medical Institute).

Contributors to Sen. Baucus' Glacier PAC also include some of his former staffers now lobbying for health care organizations. These include former chief of staff David Castagnetti ($3,000), Nick Giordano ($1,000) and Roger Blauwet ($2,500). Castagnetti represents a wide array of health care companies including America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), American College of Cardiologists, Abbott Laboratories, AstraZeneca, Proctor & Gamble and Merck. Blauwet represents Merck, Wyeth, Rx Benefits Coalition and the Association of Financial Guaranty Insurers. Giordano is listed in reports as representing Covidien, Health Care Service Corporation, Johnson & Johnson, McKesson Corporation, Milliman Care Guidelines and the National Association of Public Hospitals. Many of these organizations have also made PAC contributions to the senator's Glacier PAC.

While Sen. Baucus has promised not to accept any more contributions from health care PACs, he is still willing to accept contributions from their lobbyists and executives. It will be interesting to see who showed up at the senator's big summer weekend getaway, even if the senator didn't make it there himself.

Full list of health and insurance PAC and lobbyist contributions below:

Glacier PAC Contributions 2009 (Health and Insurance PACs and Lobbyists):

PACs
American Society of Anesthesiologists	$5,000.00	01/05/09
National Emergency Medicine	$5,000.00	02/16/09
Sanofi-Pasteur	$2,500.00	02/16/09
American College of Cardiology	$5,000.00	02/16/09
American College of Radiology Association	$5,000.00	02/16/09
Pacific Pulmonary Services	$5,000.00	03/09/09
Merck	$5,000.00	03/20/09
Boston Scientific Corp	$5,000.00	03/31/09
American Podiatric Medical Association	$5,000.00	04/27/09
College of American Pathologists	$5,000.00	04/27/09
American Dental PAC	$1,000.00	05/01/09
Medtronic	$2,500.00	05/08/09
Schering-Plough	$5,000.00	05/08/09
American Chiropractic Association	$2,500.00	05/08/09
Aetna	$5,000.00	05/11/09
Torchmark	$5,000.00	06/04/09
Independent Insurance Agents of America	$5,000.00	06/30/09
Lobbyists
Tracy Spicer	$2,000.00	02/16/09
William Oldaker	$5,000.00	02/16/09
Jonathan Slade	$1,000.00	03/09/09
David Jory	$2,000.00	03/09/09
J Curtis Rich	$1,000.00	03/09/09
David Castagnetti	$3,000.00	03/31/09
Eric Hanson	$5,000.00	05/08/09
Billy Wynne	$1,000.00	05/18/09
Nick Giordano	$1,000.00	05/26/09
Roger Blauwet	$2,500.00	06/04/09
Geoffrey Peterson	$1,500.00	06/30/09
Nance Guenther-Peterson	$1,000.00	06/30/09

Yesterday, I posted about the mountain of health and insurance PAC money pouring into the 2010 reelection coffers of Sen. Chuck Grassley, the ranking Republican on the ever-important Senate Finance Committee. That money came into his account like a flooding river, but the real torrent of funds comes in the waning days of June. Could this be because of these two fundraisers held for Sen. Grassley on June 22 and June 24?

From June 22 to the end of the month Sen. Grassley raised a total of $44,700. During this time he was the beneficiary of two fundraisers, one held by the lobbyist for an alternative health organization that has lampooned reform efforts, whose invites can be found at Sunlight's Party Time web site. Back in June, Nancy Watzman, at the helm of the Party Time blog, wrote about the June 24 event hosted by Sam Brunelli, lobbyist for the Whitaker Health Freedom Foundation:

Sam Brunelli, who works for the Whitaker Health Freedom Foundation, the political arm of the Freedom of Health Foundation, and his wife, Robin Read, are feting Grassley at a breakfast on June 24 at the Capitol Hill Club. The Foundation, headed by Dr. Julian Whitaker of dietary supplement fame, states it opposes the government and the pharmaceutical industry whenever they “suppress the truth about alternative medical therapies and/or nutritional supplementation.” Read is president and CEO of the Foundation for Women Legislators, which includes Dr. Whitaker on its board. The Freedom of Health Foundation did not return a call inquiring about the event.

Brunelli is introduced as a lobbyist on the organization’s Web site, here; however there are no official records of his work at least as a federal lobbyist here, according to lobbyist disclosure reports. The most recent available tax forms filed by the Whitaker Health Freedom Foundation, the political arm, claim a budget of just $34,000 and make no mention of payments to staff. (See the organization’s 1998 990 form here.)

Brunelli formerly served as executive director of the conservative group the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which works to advance conservative state legislators. He left the group in 1995 over charges of mismanagement and personal enrichment, according to a 1995 National Journal report.

The majority of the contributions coming in during this high water mark for Sen. Grassley's PAC fundraising came from health professional organizations, all of whom paid equal to or above the amount required for PACs to gain entrance to the fundraising parties on June 22 and June 24.

The amount raised over the final eight days in June accounts for over one-quarter of the health and insurance PAC money raised by Sen. Grassley in the second quarter. The other three quarters came over the course of 83 days. Knowing this, it appears that the two fundraisers had the desired effect.

Update: I guess this is the clarifying press release: Baucus staffers say that the check was returned after it was received. The report filed with the Federal Election Commission below is from Schering-Plough, not Sen. Baucus. Schering-Plough, as a PAC, is required to file their reports electronically. Senators do not file their reports electronically and thus I couldn't access Sen. Baucus' report over the Internet, even though he filed it six days ago. So, nothing to see here, except another reason to support S. 482, the bill to make senators file these reports electronically.

This is from an article about Senate Finance Committee Chair Max Baucus' prolific fundraising from health care organizations:

To avoid any appearance of favoritism, his aides say, Baucus quietly began refusing contributions from health-care political action committees after June 1. But the policy does not apply to lobbyists or corporate executives, who continued to make donations, disclosure records show.

This is from the Federal Election Commission's records:

SCHERING - PLOUGH CORPORATION BETTER GOVERNMENT FUND

06/15/2009

5000.00

29934142146

What is Schering-Plough? Here's their explanation straight from their web site: "Schering-Plough is an innovation-driven, science-centered global health care company." And what is Schering-Plough Corporation Better Government Fund? It's a Lobbyist/Registrant PAC.

Time for a clarifying press release.

Clarify disclaimer from Sunlight: The above title "Lies Make Baby Jesus Cry" is not intended to offend your chosen deity. Instead, it is a reference to a famous quote from the popular animated series "The Simpsons." You can watch the video here.

On the same day that President Obama met with a number of health care organizations, a group of 45 conservative Democrats sent an angry letter to three House committees protesting the secrecy around the production of health care legislation in the House. The New York Times reports that this large group of Blue Dog Democrats is "'increasingly troubled' by their exclusion from the bill-writing process." The Blue Dogs largely represent more conservative-leaning districts and take positions that are often favorable to industry. They are also big fundraisers, with their coalition PAC raking in large amounts from corporate PACs.

The Blue Dog PAC pulled in $2.26 million in PAC contributions during the 2008 election cycle. Approximately eighteen percent of that amount -- $410,300 -- came from PACs connected to the health sector. During the 2008 cycle, individuals members of the Blue Dog Coalition raised a combined $6.24 million from the health sector. The average contribution to a Blue Dog Democrat in the 2008 election cycle was slightly higher -- $122,370 -- than the average contribution to a Democratic lawmaker -- $116,748.

Rep. Mike Ross, who is noted in the Times article as leading the Blue Dog Health Care Task Force, received nearly twice the average for a Blue Dog Dem -- $259,625 -- from the health sector, the most from any sector. Some other top Blue Dogs, many of whom are on the Health Care Task Force, are also leading recipients of contributions from the health sector. Reps. Bart Gordon ($395,178), Earl Pomeroy ($392,699), Jim Matheson ($350,994), Jason Altmire ($336,729), John Tanner ($264,299), Ross ($259,625), Mike Thompson ($254,625), and Patrick Murphy ($239,371) all rank in top 50 recipients of health sector campaign contributions.

When examing health sector campaign contributions over the careers of the 51 members of the Blue Dogs, the numbers jump up dramatically. For their collective careers (some spanning decades, others only one or two election cycles), the Blue Dogs have raised a total of $17.6 million from the health sector. Two members -- Gordon and Pomeroy -- have received over $1 million in contributions. Three more -- Jim Cooper, Matheson and Tanner -- are close to reaching that mark.

A spokesman for House Energy & Commerce chair Henry Waxman, one of the recipients of the letter, stated that he has already met with members of the Blue Dogs and did not understand what the commotion was about. They obviously want a seat at the table. But are they bringing their campaign funding friends with them?

Health Sector Campaign Contributions to Blue Dog Democrats in 2008

Bart Gordon	($395,178)
Earl Pomeroy	($392,699)
Jim Matheson	($350,994)
Jason Altmire	($336,729)
John Tanner	($264,299)
Mike Ross	($259,625)
Mike Thompson	($254,625)
Patrick Murphy	($239,371)
Average Democrat	($116,748)
Average Blue Dog Democrat	($122,370)

Apparently, PACs and the FEC are playing a serious game of Calvinball over disclosure rules. Bill Allison at Real Time Investigations looks at the ways PACs get around disclosure requirements by, well, making up the rules as they go along. This is how I imagine the disclosure Calvinball dialogue as it is played:

“I’m in the no-disclosure zone,” PAC.

“The no-disclosure zone only works in odd years and when you sing the ‘I hate transparency’ song,” FEC.

“Pppfffttt!!!,” PAC.

Two years ago, I was named Time's person of the year and now I own an insurance company, two mortgage brokers, and I'll soon own nearly $1 trillion worth of stock. I am so proud of me.

Luckily for me, financial services lobbyists are summoning the economic advisers of both presidential campaigns to help them draft policy positions on how to deal with my newly acquired assets and any future purchases.

It is the "dirty little secret in town," said one financial-services lobbyist -- that after lambasting lobbyists on the stump, the candidates need their counsel on how to respond to a crisis with origins too complicated for most industry outsiders to understand.

...

This week, two of the biggest financial groups in Washington, the Financial Services Roundtable and the Mortgage Bankers Association, have drawn in members from across the country to grill economic advisers from both campaigns, develop policy positions and urge prudence as both parties struggle to craft a regulatory stance on the deepening crisis.

Does this mean that Phil Gramm will be sitting across from himself?

The Legal Times blog reports that the Justice Department will release a number of documents and audio recordings related to the trial of Sen. Ted Stevens. One of those audio recordings of Stevens reveals him to be incredibly cheap. "Ted gets hysterical when he has to spend his own money," says Alaska restaurateur Robert Persons to VECO chief Bill Allen. Stevens won one battle, to obtain Allen's medical records. Allen is the government's primary witness and has a history of mental health problems related to a motorcycle accident.

The Ethics Committee is pushing ahead with an inquiry into Rep. Charles Rangel's financial disclosure snafus. Consensus has yet to take place as Ethics interim Chairman Gene Green and Ranking Member Doc Hastings released dueling letters on the form of the investigative subcommittee.

I think that someone already did this. He's totally never on TV, so I can't remember his name.

As I've already written about here, the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac PACs are now shuttered, ending an era of boundless campaign contributions used to keep lawmakers out of their business. Thanks to those campaign contributions and the subsequent lack of oversight, I now own these two mortgage giants.

Which leads directly to a Quote of the Day, from Eric Brown's Political Activity Law Blog:

We’ll have “public funding” before we know it, given all of these government bailouts of companies with PACs… AIG, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae…