Friday’s top political law links

SUPREMES AND ETHICS. Here. “A top House Democrat is going after one of the Supreme Court’s most conservative justices and trying to enlist the Chief Justice in her cause.”

UNIONS WIN UNDER CU. Here. “Unions took full advantage of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision in 2012, helping Democrats to an outside spending advantage over Republicans and leading to wins in some key state elections, according to a new analysis.”

BITCOIN UPDATE. The Post. “The FEC is one of the first federal agencies moving to issue guidance on the use of bitcoins, a significant step toward mainstream acceptance of the four-year-old online currency.”

AK: RULES HINDER. ADN. “An Anchorage Assembly member says a preliminary ruling from campaign finance regulators could put him at a disadvantage in his reelection bid.”

CO: WHAT’S RECOMMENDED. Here. “Notably, the panel recommends requiring transparency of 501 (c)(4) nonprofit groups, which have mushroomed in recent years and frequently engage in political activity without anyone knowing who’s bankrolling the campaigns.”

LA: SMALL POTATO FOCUS. Here. “The imbalance was evident at the board’s most recent meeting, on Oct. 17. The board was preoccupied with relatively minor transgressions.”

MA: BALLOT BAN. Lowell Sun. “The House on Wednesday unanimously approved legislation backed by Attorney General Martha Coakley to provide electoral penalties to municipal officials who consistently fail to file campaign finance reports.”

NY: KEEP PROSECUTORS OFF COMMISSION. Newsday. “Critics are questioning whether Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice and other county prosecutors should be leading Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s corruption commission because they raise and spend campaign money — just like state lawmakers.”

VA: REFORMS RECOMMENDED. The Post. “Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell said Thursday that he will recommend reforms to the state’s ethics and gift laws in the coming weeks.”

HAVE A NICE WEEKEND.

Thurs. political law links, 11-14-13

DUCK DYNASTY IN THE RING.  Roll Call.  “A Louisiana businessman hopes support from the popular “Duck Dynasty” reality show family will be enough to propel him to victory over the heir apparent in Saturday’s special election in Louisiana’s 5th District.”

GAVEL SHUFFLE.  Here.  “The House Appropriations Committee executed a rare midterm leadership shuffle Wednesday.”

PAKISTAN AND K ST.  The Hill.  “K Street, take note: Pakistan is back on the market.”

BITCOIN UPDATE.  CoinDesk.  “The US Federal Elections Commission (FEC) is proposing a measure that would allow election campaigns to accept bitcoin donations, but they would not be treated the same as cash currently is.”

FAILURE TO DISCLOSE. WFB. “A state affiliate of a network of liberal groups that does not disclose its donors attacked a network of state-based conservative groups on Wednesday for an alleged lack of transparency.”

PRIORITIES PICK-UPS. Politico. “President Barack Obama’s former campaign manager Jim Messina and Bill Clinton’s ex-chief-of-staff John Podesta have been in serious discussions to join the new incarnation of Priorities USA, the one-time pro-Obama super PAC that’s set to morph into the designated high-dollar group backing Hillary Clinton, multiple sources confirmed to POLITICO.”

FEC AGENDA.  The agenda for tomorrow’s Federal Election Commission meeting is online here.

CO:  LIFT LIMITS.  C&E.  “Colorado should lift its contribution limits to state candidates and political parties and provide a limited state income tax credit for those donations, according to a new report from the University of Denver.”

NY:  OFF THE RAILS.  Here.  “The Moreland Commission’s mandate ostensibly is to investigate weaknesses in state election and campaign finance laws relating to lobbying, public corruption, conflicts of interest, and government ethics. But from its inception last summer, the commission had an air of unreality.”

VT:  PAC TO PAY.  Here.  “The Vermont attorney general says a Democratic advocacy group will pay $30,000 for violating Vermont’s campaign finance laws.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Wed. political law links, 11-13-13

L PAC BILL INTRODUCED.  Here.  “According to the release, ‘The bill will extend the current ban on the personal use of funds by candidate reelection campaigns by clarifying that the ban also applies to leadership PACs, a campaign committee of a political party, and every kind of campaign committee.'”

ALG DISCLOSURE.  Roll Call.  “Alison Lundergan Grimes, the 2014 Democratic Senate candidate running for the seat now held by Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., filed her Ethics in Government Act report today disclosing her personal financial information.”

SUPER PAC START.  The Times.  “A grass-roots super PAC may seem an oxymoron: such groups can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money on political races as long as they do not coordinate with a candidate. But rather than invest in expensive television ads, Ready for Hillary puts all of its donations into building its email list of supporters.”

R’S SWAMPED.  USAT.  “Liberal super PACs have spent $10.8 million on federal races this year —twice as much as conservative super PACs, according to the Center for Responsive Politics’ tally of independent spending in federal races.”

MA:  FASTER DISCLOSURE.  Boston Globe.  “Secretary of State William F. Galvin and several state lawmakers, alarmed by the flood of secret money that poured into the Boston mayor’s race, are preparing legislation that would require outside groups to disclose their donors in real time.”

MA:  COMPLAINT FILED.  Here.  “The Massachusetts Republican Party on Tuesday made good on its promise to file official complaints over alleged campaign finance violations by Attorney General Martha Coakley, a Democrat seeking to become the state’s next governor.”

MI:  DOUBLE LIMITS?  MLive.com.  “A new Michigan Senate bill would double limits on donations to political campaign committees — but require more frequent public reporting of those contributions.”

NY:  PUBLIC FINANCING CALL.  Here.  “Advocacy groups are encouraged by recent statements by the co- chair of Governor Cuomo’s anti corruption commission, who says he now favors public financing of political campaigns.”

PA:  POLICE BAN.  Law360.  “A provision of the Philadelphia Home Rule Charter barring police officers from making contributions to political candidates is an outdated attempt to stop corruption on the force that can no longer pass constitutional muster, an attorney for the Fraternal Order of Police told the Third Circuit on Tuesday.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.