In a campaign that's supposed to be about an ailing economy, there's just one financial indicator that remains consistently robust: Call it the Gross Political Product.
The latest signal of just how profitable a business politics remains is available on Sunlight's Follow the Unlimited Money, which shows outside spending at nearly $465 million as of Sunday evening. That's more than the total for the entire 2010 campaign, the first that took place following the Supreme Court's landmark Citizens United decision, which allowed corporations and unions to give in unlimited amounts.
This cycle's outside spending ...
Continue readingThe money bombers: Which outside spenders have the most for the homestretch?
Heading into the final stages of the 2012 campaign, the super PAC in position to have the biggest impact, by far and away, is American Crossroads, Sunlight's Follow the Unlimited Money tracker shows.
Of all the outside spenders who filed monthly reports Thursday with the Federal Election Commission, the super PAC founded by veteran Republican strategists Ed Gillespie and Karl Rove, has by far the biggest stockpile of cash: more than $32 million. The intriguing question: Will Crossroads, which has spent $25 million so far opposing President Barack Obama's reelection, continue to invest in the presidential race, or ...
Continue readingObama’s fundraising paves way for advertising dominance
When it comes to saturating the airwaves and cable outlets with political advertisements, no entity has spent more in the 2012 presidential elections than the campaign of President Barack Obama. Through July, his campaign spent more than $111 million broadcasting its message--more than twice the $48 million spent by his GOP rival, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Both campaigns will disclose their itemized contributions and expenditures for August with the Federal Election Commission today.
The Obama campaign's spending dominance is another product of the fundraising advantage the incumbent has enjoyed throughout the campaign. Through July, Obama's campaign had ...
Continue readingNew Features for Ad Hawk
Since we launched Ad Hawk a few weeks ago it's been downloaded thousands of times, featured as an Essential App by Gizmodo and praised by many media outlets. We're most excited to see users actively using it to learn more about congressional and presidential ads as they air - download the app here if you haven't already.
Continue readingShow us the Obama and Romney Super PAC donors
On the eve of the Democratic convention, Priorities USA Action, the super PAC that is supporting President Barack Obama's reelection campaign, has announced that it raised $10 million in August, via this report in the New York Times. However, we won't know who has donated this money until official reports are due at the Federal Election Commission (FEC) later this month.
Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, has not yet released its fundraising totals for August. In July, the group raised $7.5 million. Top donors to the group include Casino magnate ...
Continue readingArizona primaries: Mystery super PAC helps Quayle in redistricting matchup
Freshman Rep. Ben Quayle, R-Ariz., is getting help from a mysterious super PAC whose treasurer hails from the other side of the country.
Continue readingAd Hawk: Identify Political Ads As They Air
Ad Hawk is our new iPhone and Android app that empowers you to identify political ads as they air and immediately learn about the secretive groups spending money to influence your vote.
Continue readingSuper PAC’s fundraising losing momentum, latest reports show
Closing in on the upcoming party conventions, super PACs appear to have lost some of their steam in attracting the big bucks. The big guns of political ad spending took in $30 million during July,reports filed this week with the Federal Election Commission show. That's $25 million less than the previous month,. In all, super PACs have raised $343 million since Jan.1, 2011, the beginning of this campaign cycle.
The top donors include names now familiar as repeat super PAC underwriters, along with a few newbies. Among the eight donors who write seven-figure checks last month are three corporate donors and one left leaning nonprofit.
Continue readingSuper PAC Profile: CREDO takes aim at House freshmen
The CREDO SuperPAC exists in spite of—or because of?—its own desire to overturn Citizens United, the Supreme Court case that led to the creation of super PACs. “We wouldn't launch this SuperPAC unless we felt it was absolutely necessary to fight back,” says the group's website. But this sort of self-loathing isn’t the group's only unusual trait. Among organizations whose purpose is to obscure funding sources, CREDO is unique in its transparency.
For one thing, the group's name conspicuously excludes words like ‘freedom,‘ ‘future,’ ‘fund’ and ‘restore,' (see a list here) and makes ...
Continue readingCongressional rookies following the ways of Washington
In 2010, voters were so determined to upset the Washington establishment that they elected a House of Representatives in which 20 percent of the faces were new. It was a political revolution. But nearly two years later, the 89 rookies elected in November, 2010—80 Republicans and nine Democrats—don’t look all that different from their more veteran colleagues.
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