Earlier this month the New York Times revealed that Texas Governor and Republican presidential nominee-hopeful Rick Perry often uses the private planes of businesspeople — some long-time donors — to travel the country for free for various political events and even lobbying.
The use of the plane is legal under Texas ethics guidelines but it obviously raised some questions. A Perry spokesman said the governor was trying to save tax dollars. After the stories, Perry disclosed to the Federal Elections Commission some new travel-related campaign expenses — eight of them totaling more than $227,000, all travel costs.
Under FEC guidelines, candidates have ...
Moody’s has most employees leaving through revolving door
Moody's credit rating service -- one of the major credit rating agencies that was cited as a contributor to the 2008 financial meltdown -- has more employees go through the revolving door to work at companies they used to rate than any other credit rating agency, according to new Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings required under the Dodd-Frank financial law.
Eighty-two Moody's employees have moved on to jobs at big banks such as Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, and Bank of America over the past five years, according to the filings, which are available here. This is nearly four times ...
Continue readingSunlight Live: GOP candidates debate foreign policy, national security
The Republican presidential candidates will again be behind podiums on Saturday for a debate in the key early-primary state of South Carolina, just three days after a showdown in Michigan. As usual, the Sunlight Live team will be behind computer screens checking the candidates' facts and inserting data on money and influence in politics into the conversation at sunlightlive.com.
Whereas Wednesday's debate dealt with the stalled economy, Saturday's meeting will focus on national security and foreign policy, an area some have said is a weak spot for most candidates.
Wednesday's debate was relatively calm with the ...
Sunlight Live: Debating the economy, take two
The eight leading Republican presidential candidates are headed to Rochester, Mich., on Wednesday for the latest in a long season of GOP debates. This one will be the first since decades-old allegations of sexual harassment shook Herman Cain's campaign. Naturally, the Sunlight Live team is ready to follow the action.
Despite the allegations, the Georgia businessman continues to lead the polls along with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, though no polls have been conducted since one of the alleged sexual harassment victims held a press conference Monday afternoon. At that event, she said Cain touched her inappropriately as she ...
Nonprofit groups target super committee with billboard ads, don’t disclose donors
With so many vying for the attention of the 12 lawmakers charged with cutting up to $1.5 trillion from the nation's deficit, some groups have turned to plastering their messages to the "super committee" on billboards.
In New York City's Times Square and in Washington, D.C., the billboards tell the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction that “Congress should cut spending like a Thanksgiving turkey” and “Before we cut turkeys, Congress must cut $1.5 trillion in spending,” referring to the deadline set for the super committee. The ads are part of a campaign called Bankrupting ...
Continue readingSunlight Live Team to Cover “Super Committee” Discussion of Simpson-Bowles and Previous Debt Proposals
The so-called super committee will meet in public tomorrow for only the fourth time, when it looks at recent efforts to reduce the debt in a session titled “Overview of Previous Debt Proposals."
And the Sunlight Live team will bring you the events as it unravels in the hearing room and provide context to the discussion.
Key witnesses include Alan Simpson, former Republican Senator from Wyoming, and Erskine Bowles, a businessman and former White House Chief of Staff during the Clinton Administration. They served as co-chairs on the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform. President Obama appointed the two ...
Continue readingWednesday: Sunlight Live to check in on super committee
When the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, or super committee, emerges from the shadows on Wednesday morning to hold its first public hearing in a month, the Sunlight Live team will be there to shine a light on who’s influencing the panel.
As the 12 members inch closer to proposing at least $1.2 trillion in federal cuts or new revenue sources before the end of November, little has come out about their ideas even as reports have surfaced about daily or twice-daily “unofficial” meetings.
More than 200 groups or people — with health care lobbyists leading the way ...
What happens in Vegas helps determine the Republican presidential nominee
Texas Gov. Rick Perry may be slipping in the polls, but his fundraising prowess is keeping him among those to watch at Tuesday night's Republican debate in Las Vegas.
Perry raised $17 million during the third quarter, which ended Sept. 30, beating frontrunners Mitt Romney and Herman Cain. Romney, the former governor of Massachussetts, raised $14 million, while Cain, the former CEO of Godfather's Pizza and Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, raked in $2.8 million.
Those three will take the stage Tuesday night during a debate sponsored by CNN and the Western Republican ...
Continue readingSEC ‘revolving door’ data online but useful information redacted
The revolving door has been swinging rapidly for employees leaving the Securities and Exchange Commission to work in the private sector to represent big companies in actions brought by the agency. But while the commission gathers post-employment information from former employees, it does not make this information readily available.
Even when these records of the SEC's so-called “revolving door” are requested through the Freedom of Information Act, they tend to be incomplete and heavily redacted, according to a report by the Project on Government Oversight.
If an employee leaves the SEC and within two years and decides to work ...
Continue readingSunlight Live Team Prepares for Oct 11 Debate
Tuesday, Oct. 11, will mark the 9th Republican presidential debate, two weeks after a string of debates in Florida, California and South Carolina. Sponsored by Bloomberg News and the Washington Post, this next matchup of Republican rivals will take place at Dartmouth University in New Hampshire. The Sunlight Live team will once again provide a live video feed, as well as real-time analysis, fact checking and context to help keep viewers informed.
The organizers say this debate will specifically address fears about the economy, jobs and a possible double-dip global recession.
Since the last debate, held Sept. 22 in Florida ...
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