Campaign Financing

A Friday afternoon email I received from Organizing For Action, aka BarackObama.com, aka the group whose mission in life is to support whatever President Obama wants them to support, took me by surprise. The email, which is replicated at an OFA post, told readers that "There's one fewer climate change denier in Congress." I figured that the congressman who flipped almost had to be a…

In a glowing interview with former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Wednesday's NBC Today, co-host Savannah Guthrie touted the anti-gun activist's latest crusade: "You're putting $50 million into the effort....saying essentially this new group is going to borrow a page from the NRA's playbook. The NRA has been very successful in frightening lawmakers who oppose them....You're quoted in…

Last week, the Supreme Court eliminated limits on how much money individuals can donate to all campaigns in any two-year election cycle and NBC’s David Gregory lamented how “American democracy is for sale.” Appearing on “Meet the Press” on Sunday April 6, Gregory asked Shaun McCutcheon, the plaintiff in McCutcheon v. FEC: “How do you have candidates in the future now going to the wealthiest…

Chris Matthews made a guest appearance Thursday on MSNBC’s PoliticsNation and showcased a hilarious lack of self-awareness regarding his network, especially his own show. The Hardball host sneered at the idea that a political campaign’s TV ads amount to free speech, insisting that they are no different than Coca-Cola commercials. [Video below. MP3 audio here.] Matthews snarled:

On Thursday's NBC Today, White House correspondent Peter Alexander decried Wednesday's Supreme Court ruling striking down some campaign finance restrictions: "So just consider this, in just twelve year from the 2000 elections to those in 2012, total campaign spending in this country doubled from $3 billion to $6.3 billion. And the Supreme Court ruling now opens the door even wider for unlimited…

Liberals have a problem, according to MSNBC host Al Sharpton and two of his left-leaning friends. They’re not blaring their pro-ObamaCare message loudly enough. [Video below. MP3 audio here.] On Tuesday’s PoliticsNation, MSNBC contributor Jimmy Williams, worried that his side might be losing the PR war over ObamaCare, unleashed a rant against Republicans. He started by defining the difference…

At 63, Chuck Schumer can still dance—for awhile.  But eventually, age or ambition caught up with the New York senator.  On today's Morning Joe, Joe Scarborough grilled Schumer over Harry Reid's accusation, uttered on the floor of the Senate, that the Koch brothers are "un-American." For as long as he could, Schumer moonwalked away from Scarborough's question as to whether the Kochs are un-…

The Associated Press and The Hill both reported on Noah Kai Newkirk shouting down the Supreme Court justices in their chamber, but ignored his far-left political affiliation.  On Thursday, the wire service merely identified Newkirk's organization as "protest group 99Rise." Mario Trujilo of The Hill gave some a bit more information on Friday, but failed to disclose that 99Rise was founded by "a…

The left constantly rants about alleged illegal coordination between conservative and Republican candidates and groups with little to no proof. At least once, when it had no evidence, it went to court to try to get a judge to allow them to engage in a wide-ranging fishing expedition to find something, anything, which might "prove" it.  Fortunately, a Wisconsin judge in mid-January turned back…

NOTE: Go to the end of this post to see my reaction to an email NB received from OpenSecrets.org.  The web site OpenSecrets.org has done a great deal of useful work. Especially helpful are its lists of high-dollar political campaign donor organizations. The web site's 1989-2014 and 2012-specific lists, to name just two, demonstrate that the hyperventilating on the left and in the…

Leftist delusions can be amazing things. One of them is that the financial deck is stacked against their candidates and causes. Reid Wilson at the Washington Post attempted to explain it all on Friday. On the plus side, at least he didn't try to pretend, as Evan Halper at the Los Angeles Times did in late December, that there's no one donating to Democrats and progressive causes with the…

A search at the national web site of the Associated Press, aka the Administration's Press, on the name of Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker (not in quotes) returns only two recent relevant items. One relates to New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, where Walker is described as saying, in AP's words, "that (last week) he didn't know enough about the situation to comment ... (and) has…

As a blogger, I subscribe to the email lists of some organizations whose goals I do not, shall we say,  necessarily embrace.  Among them is Organizing For Action, the successor to the 2012 Obama campaign.  As you can imagine, although I read OFA's messages with interest, I don't succumb to its frequent appeals for funds. You might think OFA might let me loaf along in peace, but no.  Just now…

USA Today's "breaking news" email ("Ex-Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. sentenced to 30 months") opened with the following opening sentence: "The nine-term Democrat from Illinois and son of the former civil rights leader had pleaded guilty in February to using $750,000 in campaign money to pay for living expenses, clothes and luxury items." So it seemed like it would be a waste of time to click through…