On July 30, 2013, John McCain called the ATF to speak with Director B. Todd Jones. McCain wanted to talk about condors. What happened next is a labyrinthine adventure highlighting the sometimes bizarre nature of American politics.
Continue readingTop target list for foreign interests includes some surprises
Sunlight used its new Foreign Influence Explorer to see which members of Congress had the most contact with foreign interests last year.
Continue readingSaudi influence: King Abdullah’s K Street connections
Obama sits down for formal talks with King Abdullah on Friday. A review of DOJ records show the Gulf kingdom also relies on Washington lobbyists and PR firms to advance its interests stateside.
Continue readingPolitwoops 2013: the year’s top politicians and their best deletions from Twitter
As the year winds down and Washington retreats to spend the holidays with family and friends, let's look back at the many gifts politicians left for Politwoops in 2013 as they deleted messages once shared eagerly with their followers.
Continue readingBarrage of political campaign spending follows shootings at Sandy Hook
Even in an "off" election year, groups on both sides of the gun debate spent millions to influence public opinion, and some have stockpiled big warchests for 2014.
Continue readingGang of Eight enlists K Street
The bipartisan group of senators known as the Gang of Eight is planning a sequel to their Senate approach to... View Article
Continue readingPolitwoops U.S. Turns One!
The Sunlight Foundation's Politwoops U.S. adaptation of the original Politwoops.nl turns one-year-old today and it has certainly made an impression.
Continue readingHappy Birthday Richard Nixon — RIP campaign finance reform?
Tonight, at Washington's stately Mayflower Hotel, just a few blocks from Sunlight's offices, family and former aides to the late President Richard Nixon will gather to celebrate the 100th anniversary of his birth in Yorba Linda, Calif. Who knew that it would also be an occasion for campaign finance reform nostalgia?
It was actually Nixon who, in 1971, signed into law the Federal Election Campaign Act, limiting the amount of money that could be donated to congressional and presidential campaigns and requiring that those donations be reported. And ...
Continue readingAnnouncing Politwoops: Deleted Tweets from U.S. Politicians
Today we're proud to unveil Politwoops, the only comprehensive collection of deleted tweets by U.S. politicians.
Continue readingPanel clashes on Citizens United, agrees on real-time disclosure
A discussion about whether to limit money in politics, and how to do so, led to little consensus Tuesday morning among a panel divided between politicians who favor limits on political contributions and election law practicioners who find ways to legally get around or challenge them. But the politicians and lawyers could more or less agree on one thing: more disclosure of campaign giving.
On one side of the argument was Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., sponsor of the legislation that banned unlimited contributions to political parties, presidential candidate Buddy Roemer, an independent pursuing the White House through Americans Elect, and ...
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