Wed. political law links, 8/14/13

PROBE EXPANDS.  The Hill.  “The House Oversight Committee is demanding that the Internal Revenue Service official at the center of the Tea Party targeting probe turn over any emails from her personal account she might have used to conduct official business.”

BUY SUPPORTS MCCONNELL.  Politico.  “The American Chemistry Council is spending $400,000 on commercials boosting Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell in Kentucky, a source tells POLITICO.”

AFL-CIO ACTION.  Story here.  “The nation’s most prominent labor organization plans to throw its political weight most heavily into a half-dozen governors’ races in the 2014 cycle, focusing on states where the outcome of gubernatorial elections will be most ‘consequential’ for union members and working-class voters, the AFL-CIO’s top strategist said Tuesday.”

DGA AND RGA #’S.  Here.  “Both the Democratic and Republican Governors Associations reached out for large contributions from their supporters, several of whom gave gave $1 million each, including Bob Perry the day before he died.”

WHAT METADATA SHOWS.  Story here.  “A letter that a group of progressive Democrats sent to federal regulators opposing new protections for millions of Americans’ retirement accounts was drafted by a financial-industry lobbyist…”

DE:  NO INVESTIGATION.  Story here.  “Attorney General Beau Biden’s office will not look into whether Gov. Jack Markell’s campaign violated state finance law when it donated potentially improper campaign contributions to five Delaware charities.”

MO:  LAWSUIT ON LIMITS.  Story here.  “Rex Sinquefield has donated more than $25 million to various Missouri politicians and campaigns over the last five years. And he’s heading to court to make sure that can continue.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.  I’ll send around a set of links early next week.

Tues. political law links, 8/13/13

PRIEBUS DEFENDS ON FILM.  Story here.  “Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus is brushing aside a report of Fox’s involvement in a planned Hillary Clinton miniseries on NBC.”

REP. DUCK DYNASTY?  Story here.  “Some Republicans want Willie Robertson of “Duck Dynasty” fame to run for Congress, the Washington Examiner reports…”

GROUP TERMINATION.  Story here.  “The controversial liberal Super PAC whose officials are being investigated for bugging Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s office is closing up shop.”

EARLY AIR WARS.  Roll Call.  “Congressional campaign ad wars in the summer? It could happen in 2014.”

REVOLVING DOORS.  USAT.  “Ten of the 32 governors who have left office since Jan. 1, 2011, now work for trade associations or with consulting and lobbying firms that allow them to help clients navigate state and federal government agencies, a USA TODAY review of their post-government employment shows.”

K ST. BOTTOM LINE.  Time.  “Federal lobbying in Washington decreased by 4.5% in the second quarter of 2013 from the same period last year, and two thirds of the industries tracked by the Center for Responsive Politics are spending less money on lobbying in 2013 than they were in 2012.”

DC:  ADVISER CHARGED.  The Post.  “A D.C. political operative with long-standing ties to Mayor Vincent C. Gray was charged Monday with lying to federal authorities investigating an alleged off-the-books campaign on his behalf.”

NJ:  PAY TO PLAY ALLEGATIONS.  Story here.  “The treasurer for Mayor Dawn Zimmer’s re-election committee responded to accusations made Wednesday by mayoral candidate Ruben Ramos charging that Zimmer had failed to return campaign contributions from two donors made in excess of the city’s pay-to-play ordinance by producing letters sent to each donor noting the refund of their excess donations.”

NY:  SELF-FUNDER FUNDS.  Story here.  “Former Gov. Eliot Spitzer has already cut $3.65 million in checks to his campaign — including $271,831 to get his name on the city controller ballot after jumping into the race just four days before the deadline, new campaign disclosures show.”

PA:  FIGHT THE FEE.  Story here.  “A proposed state fee increase for lobbyists — from $200 to $700 — has Harrisburg lobbyists in an uproar, with numerous nonprofit groups saying the increase will hurt their ability to discuss policy with lawmakers and open government advocates concerned it could lead to less lobbying transparency.”

TX:  ETHICS FIREWORKS.  Story here.  “According to a press release,  Texans for Fiscal Responsibility director Michael Quinn Sullivan has sent the Texas Ethics Commission a letter demanding that “all documents, records and electronic files be preserved in the wrongful complaints” filed against them[.]”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Good morning, here are Monday’s political law links (8/12/13)

#LOOKWHOJUSTGOTAPAC.  Roll Call.  “Twitter Inc. also announced that it was setting up a federal political action committee, Twitter#PAC, with the Federal Election Commission.”

DONORS WANTED:  DEAD OR ALIVE.  Accountingweb.com.  “Some people are so passionate about politics they won’t let anything get in their way.”

RESIGNATION AFTER REPORT.  The Post.  “A top aide in Rep. Colleen Hanabusa’s (D-Hawaii) office has resigned after a Washington Post report said that he attempted to coordinate campaign spending by the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) with Hanabusa’s Senate campaign.”

DE:  NOT GUILTY PLEA.  Story here.  “Dover developer Michael Zimmerman pleaded not guilty today in Delaware Superior Court on a criminal charge of illegal campaign donations made to Gov. Jack Markell in 2008.”

DE:  LLC ISSUE.  Story here.  “For the average person or business, the state restricts donations to no more than $1,200 to a candidate each election cycle. Having one or several companies – a common practice among developers – provides a loophole to donate more than the maximum allowed for any one individual or business.”

FL:  LOBBYIST TIP LED TO ARREST.  Story here.  “On May 26, 2011, a South Florida lobbyist approached the FBI with a tip: He suspected that another lobbyist he knew was in bed with corrupt local politicians, and that they would be open to lining their pockets.”

IA:  NOM INVESTIGATION.  Story here.  “A national organization that opposes same-sex marriage may have violated state law by not disclosing its donors in its fight to oust Iowa Supreme Court justices, ethics officials said today.”

MA:  SOS OVER REACH ON LAW.  Story here.  “The office of Massachusetts Secretary of State William Galvin has been ordered to cover more than $100,000 in legal fees accrued by lobbyists who challenged his interpretation of the state’s revamped ethics laws.”

TX:  SETTLEMENT IN DISCLOSURE CASE.  Story here.  “Sharon Keller, the state’s top criminal court judge, has reached a deal to substantially reduce a record $100,000 fine levied by the Texas Ethics Commission for failing to fully disclose millions of dollars of real estate and income in financial statements.”

VA:  SUPPORT FOR ETHICS SESSION.  Story here.  “Fellow Republicans rebuffed Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II last week as he called for a special legislative session on ethics, but on Saturday he found a taker: Del. David Ramadan.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.