Good morning, here are political law links for Wed., 8.21.13

X-RDS BUY.  Roll Call.  “Crossroads GPS has purchased $20,000 worth of online advertising in support of Rep. Larry Bucshon, R-Ind., according to a forthcoming news release shared first with CQ Roll Call.”

THE COLOSSAL FAILURE OF BCRA.  Here.  “People may dislike parties, but trying to regulate them away often results in failure and ends up producing even more complicated and frustrating rules, like the ones that now govern our campaign finance system.”

NEW SUPER PAC.  Story here.  “A new super PAC has formed to support Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell’s run for U.S. Senate in Alaska.”

SUPER PAC REFUND. USAT.  “Federal law bars foundations from lobbying to influence legislation and frowns on them participating in politics, even indirectly.”

SUIT V. IRS.  Story here.  “Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and key campaign finance reform advocates are preparing to sue the IRS over the agency’s handling of tax-exempt applications.”

WHO DID IRS SCREEN?  The Hill.  “House Democrats said Tuesday that the IRS closely scrutinized potential successors to ACORN and other Democratic groups — evidence they say proves that the agency’s treatment of Tea Party groups was not politically motivated.”

NJ:  PAY TO PLAY MOVE.  Here.  “Camden is currently under scrutiny by the state Comptroller’s Office for not following its own ordinance when it came to choosing audit firms this year. Voorhees-based auditing firm Bowman & Co. LLP recently withdrew its bid from being appointed Camden’s municipal auditor because the city’s pay-to-play ordinance indicated that the company would have been over the allowed contribution limit.”

VA:  DGA ACTION GIVES.  Story here.  “A Democratic super PAC added another million dollars in support to Virginia gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.  I’ll send around the next set of links on Monday.

Political law links, 8.20.13

OBAMA AIDE TO FIRM. The Hill. “Gabriela Domenzain has joined the Raben Group, a prominent lobby firm.”

MCCAIN CAMPAIGN HIT FOR $80,000. Roll Call. “The commission reached a conciliation agreement with John McCain 2008 Inc., the McCain-Palin Compliance Fund Inc. and John Schmuckler, the treasurer of both.”

TIMES HITS COMMISSION. Here.

CA: TOTALL RECALL. Politico. “Efforts to recall San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, who is embroiled in a sexual harassment scandal, kicked off in earnest this weekend, with a petition drive and protest at City Hall.”

MT: ENDORSEMENTS AND MONEY OK. Story here. “An appellate court panel’s decision to allow political parties to endorse candidates and make expenditures in Montana’s nonpartisan judicial elections will stand, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Friday.”

TX: SPECIAL PROSECUTOR NAMED. Here. “A state judge appointed San Antonio attorney Mike McCrum Monday as a special prosecutor to investigate an ethics complaint against Gov. Rick Perry.”

TX: RAFFLES AND CAMPAIGNS. Story here. “State law allows nonprofit organizations to hold raffles but forbids them to benefit political campaigns.”

VA: FIRM ENDS ENGAGEMENT. Story here. “Multiple sources told News4’s I-Team that powerhouse federal lobbying group Parry, Romani, Deconcini and Symms has concluded its work on behalf of Star Scientific Inc., the Virginia-based company at the center of the growing scandal engulfing Gov. Robert McDonnell (R).”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Good morning, here are Monday’s political law links, 8/19/13

CONGRATS TO JASON ABEL. Jason Abel will be joining Steptoe as leader of their Campaign Finance and Political Law Practice. Tweet here.

AZ: SUIT ON LIMITS UPDATE. Here. “A federal lawsuit filed by a Fountain Hills resident challenging the state’s campaign-finance law finally may be coming to an end after two years.”

AZ: NONPROFIT COMPLIANCE ISSUE. News here. “An obscure non-profit corporation that faced accusations of skirting campaign-finance laws in the 2011 Phoenix elections for mayor and City Council, has re-emerged — and insiders say it has taken to old habits.”

AR: PERSONAL USE ALLEGATIONS. Here. “A veteran state senator spent thousands of dollars of campaign funds on personal purchases, including a home surround sound system, the state Ethics Commission found following a hearing Friday.”

LA: AUTOMATIC LATE FEE. Story here. “Capitano missed the Feb. 15 deadline to file campaign finance reports for 2012. That triggered an automatic late fee of $600 from the state Ethics Administration.”

MA: BUSINESS GOOD. Story here. “It’s one of Massachusetts’ boom industries — a recession-proof, $100 million-a-year enterprise that employs thousands of practitioners and support staff and shows no signs of waning.”

MI: PHOTO DRAWS COMPLAINT. Story here. “The Michigan Bureau of Elections will investigate whether Lansing City Council candidate Chong-Anna Canfora and Ingham County Sheriff Gene Wriggelsworth broke the state’s campaign finance laws.”

MI: PAYROLL DEDUCTION POSSIBLE LAW CHANGE. Story here. “Senate Bill 283 would eliminate Michigan’s annual recertification requirement for deducting political contributions on an automatic basis.”

OH: LOBBY LAW SUMMARY. Scott Stetson has added a state summary of Ohio lobbyist rules here.

SC: ETHICS ALLEGATIONS. Story here. “Days after Gov. Nikki Haley’s ethics charges became public, the executive director of the State Ethics Commission wrote Haley’s attorney to say ‘we can put this to bed quickly.'”

VA: FIRST LADY BOUGHT STOCK. The Post. “Maureen McDonnell, the first lady of Virginia, twice purchased thousands of shares of stock in Star Scientific, a spokesman for McDonnell’s legal team confirmed Friday night. The stock was bought and held in the same time frame that she and Gov. Robert F. McDonnell were taking steps to promote the dietary supplement company.”

VA: ETHICS REFORM NOW. Ken Cuccinelli’s plea for a special legislative session to tackle ethics reform is online here. “Change — especially when it is needed most — is never easy. But the General Assembly should act now to take on ethics reform. Virginians are legitimately looking for action, and the sooner they get solutions from their elected representatives, the sooner and more completely will trust will be restored in our state government.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.