• 2012 election cycle sparking campaign finance reform? Incumbents barraged with ads this year by outside groups, which often do not have to disclose their funders, are talking about campaign finance reform. Will commiserating about the mystery donors behind attack ads actually lead to more disclosure? (New York Times)

Lobbying

• Abramoff: Congress unaware of being bribed: Jack Abramoff, the man who served 43 months in prison for trying to buy influence, recently told a crowd that members of Congress do not know when they are being bribed. The culture in Washington, he argued, is to think of lobbyist gifts as nothing out of the ordinary.  (NJ.com)

• Campaign season slows down lobbying . . . With the elections closing in, lobbyists are seeing their work load diminish temporarily. Some of the largest DC lobbying groups reported lower revenues in the third quarter while elected officials are on the campaign trail. (The Hill)

• . . .  but lobbying is still up from last year: Lobbying revenues from July-September of this year were up approximately $16 million from the same time last year, disclosure records show. This jump comes despite a gridlocked Congress that has been out of session for much of the summer while members campaign. (Politico)

• Lobbyists go to help campaigns: Lobbyists are not sitting around with nothing to do while politicians are out of DC and on the campaign trail. Republican and Democratic lobbyists are using vacation days to campaign for candidates. (Roll Call)

• Trade, Jobs and the Digital Economy. Wed. 10/24. 12:00 – 1:30 pm. Capitol Visitor Center, HC-8 Capitol Building, Ground Floor, East Capitol Street, NE and 1st St, NE Washington, DC 20004.

• Journalists’ Digital Security. National Press Club. Wed. 10/24. 6:30 – 8:00 pm. 529 14th Street NW, 13th floor, conference rooms, Washington, DC 20045.