Independent groups
Washington Post, Blog: Americans hate super PACs. But will they vote against them?
By Chris CilizzaLook no further than the Utah Republican Party convention over the weekend. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) took a strong majority of the vote and nearly avoided having to go to a June primary with his opponent — a good showing considering the position Hatch was in last year — and he did it in large part by running against outsiders who had come to Utah to unseat him.
NY Times, Blog: Super PAC Ad Tries to Tie Romney to Oil Companies
By Michael ShearEven as Mitt Romney continues to assail President Obama on the price of gas at the pump, Democrats are pushing back by trying to tie Mr. Romney to oil companies and the wealthy interests behind them.
Politico: Big Labor’s big moment
By Jonathan Allen and Robin BravenderThey built a recall campaign that could still knock Republican Scott Walker out of the governor’s mansion in Maple Bluff, Wisconsin.And on Tuesday night, they knee-capped Rep. Jason Altmire in a Pennsylvania Democratic primary – getting payback for his vote against the president’s health care law.
Disclosure
Washington Post: Most independent ads for 2012 election are from groups that don’t disclose donors
By Dan EggenNearly all of the independent advertising being aired for the 2012 general-election campaign has come from interest groups that do not disclose their donors, suggesting that much of the political spending over the next six months will come from sources invisible to the public.
LA Times: FCC weighs putting political ad data online; broadcasters balk
By Joe FlintBut now the Federal Communications Commission wants to take that same material, which is required by law to be made available to the public, out of a dusty filing cabinet and onto the Internet. On Friday, the FCC will vote on whether to make that a new rule.
Candidates and parties
Bloomberg: Obama Campaign Asks Unions to Help Cover Convention Costs
By Hans NicholsPresident Barack Obama’s political advisers are pressing labor unions to contribute to the Democratic convention in September to cover a fundraising shortfall resulting from their self-imposed ban on corporate donations, according to two people familiar with the matter.
The Hill: RNC chief accuses Obama of campaigning on taxpayer’s dime
By Amie ParnesThe Republican National Committee is asking the Government Accountability Office to examine President Obama’s “misuse” of government funds to benefit his reelection campaign.
The Hill: Obama’s first official campaign rallies to be in Virgina, Ohio
By Amie Parnes and Justin SinkVowing that “the monologue is over,” President Obama’s campaign team announced Wednesday that the president is ready to kick off the 2012 campaign, holding his first official rallies next week in two critical swing states.
Roll Call: Obama Campaign Kicks Off General Election
By Steven T. DennisPresident Barack Obama’s campaign announced today that he will kick off his re-election bid with first lady Michelle Obama with campaign rallies in Ohio and Virginia on May 5 and will eagerly contrast his vision to Mitt Romney’s.
The Hill: Romney fundraiser: Donors ‘coming out of the woodwork’
By Cameron JosephMitt Romney’s fundraising has skyrocketed since he became the de facto nominee, a top Romney fundraiser told The Hill Wednesday evening.
NY Times: Yielding to ‘the Real World, ’ Gingrich Tells Romney He’ll Quit the Race
By Michael ShearNewt Gingrich’s presidential campaign was always improbable: He was a Washington insider, twice divorced, with a lavish lifestyle and a penchant for off-the-cuff bluntness that is perfect for a pundit, not a politician.
Lobbying and ethics
HOH Roll Call: Splash for Cash: Mystery Internship Plagues Pryor
By Warren RojasFrancis stuck to his story that his purchase was on the up-and-up, asserting that his online bid and subsequent prize were thoroughly vetted by all the parties involved. “It went through a lobbying firm,” he said of the since-canceled transaction.
