SUPER PAC PRIMER. Covington’s super PAC primer is online here.
SUPER PAC FINANCING. CBS. “Sheldon and Miriam Adelson are among the richest couples in the world with a fortune Forbes estimated at $23 billion, and they’re bankrolling the super PAC that supports Gingrich.”
SUPER PAC SPENDING. CNN. “Super PACs have spent $35.4 million on the 2012 presidential race, according to federal campaign disclosures, including $11.4 million on last Saturday’s South Carolina Republican primary and $6.4 million on next week’s contest in Florida.”
SUPER PAC LEGISLATING. HuffPost. “Amid growing concern over the growing influence of super PACs, congressional Democrats are set to introduce new legislation designed to bring an increased level of transparency to campaign-related expenditures.”
SUPER PAC LEAN. The Post. “Endorse Liberty, an interest group with the sole purpose of helping Rep. Ron Paul’s bid for the presidency, has spent $3.1 million this year without expensive campaign consultants or a full-time staff member.”
SUPER PACS IN H AND S RACES. Story here. “Third-party political action committees, flexing their muscle in the Republican presidential tilt, also are focusing on U.S. congressional races, observers say.”
LEAKING ETHICS. The Hill. “A leak to the media that identified three Republicans who are being investigated by the House Ethics Committee has lawmakers and staffers wondering who the source is, and his or her motive.”
LOBBYIST FEEDBACK. Roll Call. “Lobbyists obviously don’t get to write the State of the Union. But the White House did solicit advice from its liberal-leaning outside allies and heard plenty from industry groups such as the NRF. Though some groups were pleased to hear President Barack Obama give their priorities a boost and quickly dispatched press releases cheering him, others are now downplaying the address’s significance at all.”
TECH LOBBYING. Politico. “Now, as it celebrates what appears to be a victory in its Capitol Hill fight over fast-moving copyright bills, the tech industry may see itself as an innovator in lobbying, using the tools it created to beat the opposition at its own game on its own turf.”
FUNDRAISER HOSTED. Roll Call. “Democratic lobbyist Heather Podesta will host an ‘annual intimate dinner with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee’ on Wednesday, according to an invitation obtained by Roll Call.”
PARTIES THROWN. Story here. “The first ’48 hour’ reports for lobbyists are starting to trickle in to the Secretary of State’s Office. By law, during a legislative session, lobbyists are required to report expenditures larger than $500 within 48 hours of the spending.”
MAINE PROBE. Story here. “A Maine ethics board has given the go-ahead for a deeper investigation into the finances of two political action committees that support efforts to bring a casino to Lewiston last year.”
HAVE A GREAT DAY.