CRAIG SUED.  Story here.  “Former Republican U.S. Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho was sued Monday by federal election regulators who contend he misused some $217,000 in campaign funds for his legal defense after his arrest in a 2007 airport bathroom sex sting.”

TEA PARTY PLATFORM MOVES.  Roll Call.  “James Bopp Jr., a prominent conservative lawyer and high-ranking Republican national committeeman, is helping tea partyers influence the official GOP 2012 platform.”

12 MIONEY CHA$E.  The Times.  “With the primary season over, the presidential campaign has entered a new phase, one dictated by the competitive realities of the deregulated campaign finance system.”

AXELROD ON CFR.  Here.  “On David Axelrod’s New York City itinerary for Monday: to meet privately with potential donors to a ‘super PAC’ supporting President Obama’s re-election, then publicly declare that if that re-election happens, Mr. Obama will stop at almost nothing to undo the ruling that made super PACs possible.”

RTAA DECIDED.  CLC Release.  “The suit specifically challenged the ‘subpart (b)’ definition of ‘expressly advocating’ (11 C.F.R. § 100.22(b)), as well as the FEC’s methodology for determining when a group has campaign activity as its ‘major purpose,’ an important step in the larger determination of political committee status.”

TRIPS AND HLOGA.  Story here.  “Now the number of trips funded by outside groups is soaring back to record levels, fueled by big-spending education and charity organizations that sometimes are just an arm of lobbying groups.”

EDWARDS MYSTERY.  Story here.  “From the start there were allegations from the Edwards camp that he was a victim of political score settling.”

CARLSBAD CITY INKS DEAL.  Story here.  “It’s official. Eddy County and the city of Carlsbad have a Washington-based lobbying firm on the payroll.The Carlsbad City Council, in a 6-2 vote Tuesday night, approved a bid from the C2 Group for lobbyist services.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.