Should a court case on whether Washington state must disclose the identities of people calling for a referendum affect the... View Article
Continue readingPotential House Health Care Vote Switchers Reliant on Party Campaign Money
Seven key Democrats seen as potential vote-flippers on the health care reform bill are heavily reliant on campaign funds from... View Article
Continue readingSunlightLive covers health care summit
The Sunlight Foundation has all hands on deck today providing context for today's bipartisan healthcare summit in real time. Stay tuned all day for updates.
A quick analysis of Center for Responsive Politics data shows that when campaign contributions to the group of roughly 40 party leaders present are tallied, the health professional, insurance, pharmaceutical, hospital and health services/HMO industries all rank within the top 16--meaning those tasked with reforming the industry have also relied upon it more heavily than almost any other to stay in office. (Lobbyists rank 7th.)
Top-contributing industries, 2009-2010
Another Court, Another Blow to Campaign Finance Limits (and Disclosure?)
The Colorado Supreme Court rejected a referendum to stem the flow of money in politics by banning holders of large,... View Article
Continue readingSchumer and Van Hollen Embrace Transparency Measures to Combat Citizens United
The Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC opened the door to a torrent of new political spending that,... View Article
Continue readingNFL Owners, Executives Contribute In Run-Up to Labor Dispute
The Super Bowl may have been the most watched television program of all time, but many inside the National Football... View Article
Continue readingPotential Murtha successor Norm Dicks knows the favor factory
A New Regime Required For Disclosure
As most of you know I have a long history in the campaign finance field as a founder of two... View Article
Continue readingRuling may free corporate influencers from contortions
The Supreme Court's Citizens United vs. FEC ruling undoes years of restrictions on the ability of corporations and labor unions to use their treasuries to attempt to sway elections.
But a more accurate interpretation might be that it allows them to be more up-front about it.
From the first days after President George W. Bush signed the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, better known as McCain-Feingold, huge sums of unregulated money have flowed from multi-billion dollar businesses, powerful labor unions and wealthy individuals with the intent of advancing their agendas and swaying political opinion, often in hidden or ...
Citizens United and Transparency: A Look Ahead
The Supreme Court has issued its long-awaited decision in the election law case Citizens United [PDF], to which Ellen has... View Article
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