CCP
Campaign Finance Events Friday 11/16
By Joe TrotterThere are two events tomorrow in the DC area on campaign finance. The first event is the GW law review symposium, titled: “Law and Democracy: A Symposium on the Law of Governing Our Democratic Process” (link here), features CCP founder and Chairman Brad Smith at the 1:45pm panel and former CCP VP of Policy Allison Hayward in its 11am panel. The event takes place at the Jacob Burns Moot Court Room (Lerner 101) on the GW campus and begins at 9AM.
Independent groups
Washington Post: Watchdog group files FEC complaint against Crossroads GPS
By TW FarnamThe Crew complaint focuses on comments made by Rove at a secret fundraiser for Crossroads, as recounted by a Bloomberg News reporter in attendance. At the event, Rove was quoted as saying that a donor had provided $3 million for the Ohio Senate race out of affection for the Republican candidate, Josh Mandel.
Candidates and parties
Washington Post: Republicans to Mitt Romney: Exit stage left
By Chris Cillizza“There is no Romney wing in the party that he needs to address,” said Ed Rogers, a longtime Republican strategist. “He never developed an emotional foothold within the GOP so he can exit the stage anytime and no one will mourn.”
The Hill: Senate Republicans’ election lesson is to work on fielding better candidates
By Alexander BoltonThe emerging consensus: They need better candidates.
Wall Street Journal: Rove: The Lessons of Defeat for the GOP
By Karl RoveTactically, Republicans must rigorously re-examine their “72-hour” ground game and reverse-engineer the Democratic get-out-the-vote effort in order to copy what works. For example, a postelection survey shows that the Democratic campaign ground game was more effective in communicating negative information. It would be good to know why—and how to counter such tactics in the future.
Lobbying and ethics
Wall Street Journal: Targeting the ‘Lobbyist’ Next Door
By JEANETTE M. PETERSENAre you a lobbyist? You might be and not even know it. That’s because in more than half the country the simple act of speaking to fellow citizens about issues of public importance can be regulated as a form of lobbying.The article continues: Many MCOM donors and volunteers come from countries ruled by oppressive regimes, and these supporters withdrew from the group in 2010 when they learned that the lobbying law might require the placement of their names and addresses on a publicly accessible, government-run database.
The Advertiser: Jindal recall organizers face ethics fines
“Many times deadlines and other campaign ethics requirements can be unclear to individuals not familiar with the political process,” Kleckley said in a statement. “We are fortunate here in America to be able to voice our disagreements, and I strongly believe in protecting those rights.”
Washington City Paper: Mobilizing: How D.C.’s Food Trucks Learned to Love Lobbying
By Jessica SidmanThe on-the-street effort is just part of their campaign. Food trucks are growing more savvy and sophisticated in their approach to regulatory threats. Over the last two years, the truck group has transformed from a handful of operators who met on Mondays in the back of Duffy’s Irish Pub into a 501(c)(6) trade association with more than 50 dues-paying members and a registered lobbyist. Next year, the organization will hire a full-time executive director and officially rebrand itself as the Food Truck Association of Metropolitan Washington, tackling mobile vending issues both within and beyond the District proper.
Legal Times: D.C. Should Strengthen Lobbying Disclosure Rules, Transparency Advocate Says
By Andrew RamonasThe Sunlight Foundation on Tuesday posted on its blog language the Council could use in drafting a bill intended to improve lobbying disclosure. Under D.C. law, lobbyists must file with the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance semiannual reports that publicly disclose their efforts to influence members of the city’s legislative and executive branches. But Sunlight’s proposal would require lobbyists to reveal to the Office of Campaign Finance within 72 hours contacts they made with D.C. officials and to submit to the agency monthly reports on their government advocacy efforts.
