[Political Activity Law]

ASKING WHY. USAT. “Last month, Common Cause — a watchdog group that fights against gerrymandering, voter suppression and the role of money in politics — filed a formal complaint against Sanders and Our Revolution with the Federal Election Commission.”

CO: NO SHARING. RH. “A Fort Collins-based political entity has been charged with two misdemeanors for allegedly refusing to disclose required campaign finance information during the 2019 election cycle.”

FL: COMPLAINT FILED. KN. “The complaint, lodged Jan. 30 with the Florida Division of Elections by attorney William S. Pollak, contends Mooney received more than the allowed individual maximum of $1,000 in a state legislative campaign from two Upper Keys residents.”

FL: BLOCKING CURBS. TF. “Cities and counties in Florida that want to limit dark money or foreign donors in their own elections would be stopped under a surprise proposal now moving through the Legislature.”

MO: MONEY CURBS. KPVI. “State Auditor Nicole Galloway is again urging Gov. Mike Parson to take action to curb the influence of dark money in Jefferson City, following his recent comments on the subject.”

NY: SPENDING LOOK. DF. “State Assemblyman Kevin Cahill, D-Kingston, spent thousands of dollars in campaign cash in 2019 at, among other places, restaurants, florists and theaters, according to recent filings with the state Board of Elections.”

OR: FIGHT LAUNCHED. OPB. “Oregon legislators are wasting no time in once again diving into a new political fight over Oregon’s wide-open system of raising money for campaigns.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

PAC HIT. PH. “A Washington, D.C., nonprofit focused on reducing the influence of money in politics has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission over a $150,000 donation to a pro-Susan Collins political action committee.”

GAO ON CAMPAIGN FINANCE. GAO. “Among other things, this report provides views from a range of specialists on federal campaign finance issues. For example, specialists noted that campaign finance laws and regulations have not kept up with the internet and do not regulate online political ads to the same extent as TV, radio, and print ads.”

MONEY RACE. DMR. “Democratic and Republican campaigns and outside groups seeking to bolster, or hurt, candidates have spent or reserved almost $69 million in advertisements as of Friday, according to tracking firm Advertising Analytics.”

AR: BLACKOUT HALTED. BL. “Arkansas can’t enforce a law prohibiting ‘a longtime political activist’ from donating to political campaigns until two years before election day, because the law likely violates her First Amendment rights, the Eighth Circuit said Monday.”

OR: REFORM DOUBT. PM. “Oregon’s Supreme Court is considering a case that could reverse a previous decision that found that limits on campaign contributions violated the state constitution by infringing on free-speech protections.”

TX: BUILDING ORGANIZATION. TT. “Backed by massive donations, the Republican super PAC Engage Texas is assembling a behemoth of an organization as it rushes to register new voters ahead of a crucial 2020 election.”

SENTENCE IN “SCAM PAC” CASE. WP. “The Justice Department is cracking down on ‘scam PACs’ that extract money from donors by promising falsely to spend it on political campaigns. On Friday, Strategic Campaign Group’s former president, Kelley Rogers, was sentenced in an Alexandria, Va., federal court to three years in prison.”

MEMES AND POLITICS. WP. “Last week, Griner discovered her son’s copyrighted image in the last place she ever expected to find it: a campaign fundraising ad for Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa). King has repeatedly come under fire for inflammatory remarks and rebuked as racist, anti-Semitic or insulting to minorities. The ad superimposes Sam’s famous face over a blurred picture of the U.S. Capitol alongside all-caps text that reads, ‘FUND OUR MEMES!!!'”

ZOMBINE ZONE. JG. “Are you among the countless Americans who feel so passionately about the upcoming presidential election that you wrote a check to your favorite candidate? But if your candidate dropped out of the race, can you get your money back?”

RECORD HAUL. TH. “Predominant Republican fundraising groups, Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF) and American Action Network (AAN), announced a 68 million dollar combined fundraising year in 2019.”

TROPICAL DEAL. POL. “The Virgin Islands land deal, reported here for the first time, furthers a pattern in which members of the Biden family have engaged in financial dealings with people with an interest in influencing the former vice president.”

AL: PAC BLITZ. YH. “Fighting for Alabama Fund is a federal independent expenditure committee, colloquially known as a super PAC, supporting Congressman Bradley Byrne’s (AL-01) Republican 2020 U.S. Senate bid.”

AZ: TOSSED RULES. CN. “Two Arizona ballot-handling practices hamper the voting rights of minorities, and one state law was written to do just that, an en banc Ninth Circuit ruled Monday in a federal lawsuit filed by Democrats in the Republican-dominated state.”

NC: GUILTY PLEA. BTV. “Bibbs was indicted on ten felony and misdemeanor charges in February 2018 following an investigation by the North Carolina Secretary of State’s Office that was prompted by a WBTV investigation. The charges included felony obstruction of justice, felony perjury and misdemeanor counts of lobbying without registration, among others.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.