In the News
LA Times: California charities must disclose major donors, court rules
By Maura DolanDavid Keating, president of the Center for Competitive Politics, said the group planned to appeal. “We think the decision is wrong and threatens 1st Amendment speech rights,” he said in a statement.
Central Valley Business Times: Court: State can compel disclosure of political donors
The “Center for Competitive Politics” had sought an injunction stopping the state from getting its list of major donors.The appellate court says disclosure is not injurious to the Center and its supporters’ exercise of their First Amendment rights to freedom of association.Without qualifying for the registry, a non-profit cannot solicit tax-deductible contributions in California.
FEC
National Review: Dear FEC, Trying to Get More Women Elected Is Not Your Job
By Hans A. Von SpakovskyOne of the biggest problems in Washington is the overreach of federal agencies, many of which go far beyond their limited mandates. Instead of simply carrying out the duties assigned to them under federal laws, they invade the province of Congress, which is supposed to hold hearings, formulate public policy, and create the federal laws that these agencies enforce.Take Federal Election Commission chair Ann Ravel’s May 12 forum on “Women in Politics.”The FEC was created in 1975 to enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA), which governs the raising and spending of funds in federal elections for president and Congress. The federal statute that authorizes the FEC (2 U.S.C. § 437c) lays out its duties very succinctly: 1) enforce federal campaign-finance law, 2) issue regulations implementing the law, and 3) provide advisory opinions to affected individuals, candidates, and political organizations that explain the requirements of the law.Congress also very specifically made the FEC a bipartisan agency. The bipartisanship is crucial, given that the agency is charged with the sensitive task of administering federal law affecting fundamental First Amendment activity: political speech and association.
NY Times: F.E.C. Can’t Curb 2016 Election Abuse, Commission Chief Says
By Eric LichtblauWASHINGTON — The leader of the Federal Election Commission, the agency charged with regulating the way political money is raised and spent, says she has largely given up hope of reining in abuses in the 2016 presidential campaign, which could generate a record $10 billion in spending.“The likelihood of the laws being enforced is slim,” Ann M. Ravel, the chairwoman, said in an interview. “I never want to give up, but I’m not under any illusions. People think the F.E.C. is dysfunctional. It’s worse than dysfunctional.”
Independent Groups
Washington Post: A chance for more democratic primaries, thanks to Citizens United
By Floyd AbramsMr. Milbank blamed the Citizens United case for this supposedly untoward result, citing as an example Newt Gingrich’s financial support, which allowed him to remain in the Republican primary contest in 2012 “long after he was a viable candidate (if he ever was).” But Mr. Gingrich, the former House speaker, won the Georgia and South Carolina Republican primaries in 2012. While that was insufficient to lead to his nomination, the notion that democratic principles would somehow have been better served if Mr. Gingrich had been forced to leave the fray earlier for lack of funds is bizarre.
National Journal: How Super PACs Will Strengthen Democracy in 2016
By Josh KraushaarThe paradox of this presidential election is that despite the record amount of money that will be poured into the race over the next 18 months, fundraising actually will matter less than in recent presidential campaigns, and the value of retail political talent will be at a premium. Each individual donation matters less when the pot is so large and nearly every viable candidate boasts a number of super-donors, meaning no one uber-wealthy donor can reshape the race in his or her image.There’s massive inflation taking place in the world of campaign finance. The value of a buck—or a million of them—isn’t what it used to be. What’s most important is the number of candidates that can reach a certain financial level to compete in the early states. Simply racking up eye-popping fundraising numbers isn’t as important; there’s a diminishing law of return past a certain dollar amount.In the recent past, not being able to raise enough money meant political extinction unless a candidate scored an upset victory in the early states, generating the free media coverage to sustain them through bigger, more expensive states. Even then, the graveyard of failed presidential candidacies is filled with upstart underdogs who won a small state but were overwhelmed by the financial resources of the establishment favorite. (Think Mike Huckabee in 2008, John McCain in 2000, or Gary Hart in 1984.) Compared with the current liberalized campaign finance system, the old reality was actually less democratic, as it guaranteed an advantage to the wealthiest and best-connected candidates.
Wisconsin
Daily Signal: Wisconsin Home Invasions: When the Government Upends Democracy
By Mark MecklerOver two years the “investigation of all-things-Walker expanded to include everything from alleged campaign-finance violations to sexual misconduct to alleged public contracting bid-rigging to alleged misuse of county time and property.”Very few charges stuck, however. The union reform bill, Act 10, passed, and Walker was affirmed as governor. But the second round of investigations disrupted the lives of many other law-abiding citizens who committed the “crime” of exercising of their First Amendment rights.These draconian tactics had the desired effect. Organizations were subpoenaed for all their business records. The Wisconsin Club for Growth had to shut down fundraising because they could no longer guarantee that donors’ privacy would be protected.
Candidates, Politicians, Campaigns, and Parties
Washington Post: The Clintons, a luxury jet and their $100 million donor from Canada
By Tom Hamburger, Rosalind S. Helderman and Anu NarayanswamyBill Clinton was planning a charity trip to Latin America and needed a big plane.For Frank Giustra, who had never met the former president, this was an opportunity. The Canadian mining magnate and onetime Hollywood studio owner stepped up to let the former president borrow his luxurious passenger jet. There was just one condition: Giustra would come along for the ride.That 2005 trip was the start of an intense, mutually beneficial friendship — one that has helped propel the Clinton Foundation into a global giant and established Giustra’s reputation as an international philanthropist while helping him build connections in countries where his business was expanding.Giustra has since committed more than $100 million to the work of the Clinton Foundation, becoming one of the largest individual donors to the family’s charities.
Politico: Hillary Clinton’s big-money dilemma
By Glenn Thrush and Anna PalmerThere is a growing realization inside Hillary Clinton’s Brooklyn headquarters and among the wider circle of Democratic operatives that coming up with the requisite $1 billion to $2.5 billion in campaign and super PAC cash for the 2016 campaign will be a lot tougher than anticipated — and demands a more aggressive approach to out-of-the-gate fundraising.
Lobbying and Ethics
Politico: Scarves, BMWs, Admirals Clubs: Congress’ petty cash problem
By Jake Sherman and Anna PalmerDemocratic Rep. Anna Eshoo has dipped into her campaign fund to buy more than $2,000 in gifts for her good friend and fellow Californian, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, from swank stores such as Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman.Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) has dropped nearly $3,400 in campaign cash servicing his BMW in Alexandria, Virginia.Other lawmakers have used their war chests for European travels, upgrade airline seats and access the American Airlines Admirals Club in airports across the country. In one case, a retired member of Congress with money left in his account used the cash to pay his wife roughly $20,000 since Election Day.
State and Local
New York –– NY Times: Dean Skelos, New York Senate Leader, and His Son Are Said to Face Arrest Next Week
By William K. Rashbaum, Susanne Craig and Thomas KaplanDean G. Skelos, the leader of the New York State Senate, and his son are expected to be arrested on federal corruption charges next week, according to people with knowledge of the matter.The expected arrests, coming roughly three months after federal bribery and kickback charges led Assemblyman Sheldon Silver to step down as speaker, would signal an extension of the investigation into allegations of political corruption in Albany, and would almost certainly further upend the legislative session.
