BRITAIN ON-LINE MAGAZINE VIEW ON US CAMPAIGN FINANCE. Spike. “When James Madison drafted the Bill of Rights, he and his enlightened peers believed their fellow men were potentially free-thinking, rational and autonomous agents, capable of enjoying ever-more freedom. Today we need a similar communal self-confidence; and we need to resist the calls to limit how much freedom we can handle, no matter the cost.”
FL: LAWMAKER CLEARED. TBO. “The state Commission on Ethics found no probable cause that the lawmakers misused their elected position to benefit themselves in the Hardee County development project, according to a news release.”
IL: ALDERMAN MOVE. Chicago Tribune. “The City Council today voted to give the job of campaign finance oversight of aldermen to a city agency that doesn’t want it, a move that the council’s watchdog said will be viewed as ‘a cynical ploy’ to avoid scrutiny.”
MD: LOSING STEAM. Gazette.net. “As the Montgomery County Council heads on its monthlong August recess, a bill to establish public campaign financing remains unfinished, and some members are questioning what problems, if any, the reform bill solves.”
MA: MODIFYING RULES. Dedham Local. “The bill would double the individual campaign contribution limit to $1,000 a year, but the first change to the donation limits in 20 years would not take effect until January. The bill also allows state committees to set up legal defense funds, and authorizes statewide candidate committees to donate up to $100 to another candidate, but not more than an aggregate total of $1,500 a year to other candidates.”
MS: FILING AND SALARY LOSS. Clarion Ledger. “State Sen. Melanie Sojourner has been assessed a $500 fine for failing to file a campaign finance report that was due Jan. 31, and has been warned her state lawmaker’s salary will be cut off until she files it.”
NY: CUOMO WARNED. NYT. “In an escalation of the confrontation between the United States attorney in Manhattan, Preet Bharara, and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo over the governor’s cancellation of his own anticorruption commission, Mr. Bharara has threatened to investigate the Cuomo administration for possible obstruction of justice or witness tampering.”
HAVE A GOOD DAY. I’ll send around the next set of links on Monday.