Wednesday’s political law links, 4/24

BOB EDGAR, 69. News here. “Bob Edgar passed away suddenly this morning at his home in Northern Virginia at the age of 69, according to Common Cause, the democracy watchdog group for which Edgar served as president and CEO.”

PRISON IN CONTRIBUTION CASE. Story here. “Developer Jay Odom was sentenced to six months in federal prison Tuesday for campaign contribution fraud.”

FOLLOW THE MONEY BILL. HuffPo. “The bill, known as the Follow the Money Act, would require any and all groups spending at least $10,000 on electoral activity to register and disclose contributions above $1,000. The bill would also raise the threshold for contributor disclosure from $200 to $1,000 for all political committees, including those of candidates and political parties.”

MCCONNELL ON CU. Prof. Michael McConnell’s new paper on CU is previewed here.

TELEFORUM ON LIFE AFTER CU. Yesterday’s interesting Federalist Society teleforum was recorded and I believe should be online here.

DAVIDSON ON ETHICS ISSUE. Roll Call. “I’ll leave it to the audio experts to determine who is right about the recording. Whatever it says, the incident is a useful reminder that staffers should be careful not to do campaign work on official Senate time or using official resources. A violation, or even the appearance of one, can lead to trouble.”

CT: BILL REVIVAL. Story here. “Likely Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Foley is hoping to resurrect his failed legislative proposal that would tighten ethics rules for public officials in Connecticut.”

TX: NONPROFITS TARGETED. Story here. “Politically active nonprofits, which are playing an increasingly important role in state elections, would no longer be able to hide the identity of their major donors under a bill making its way through the Texas Legislature.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

Good morning, here are Tuesday’s political law links, 4/23

LAWSUIT IN ETHICS MATTER. The Hill. “Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) is suing Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and six other lawmakers, charging that they mishandled the ethics investigation that led to his public censure in late 2010.”

OFA IN THE NEWS. Here. “Organizing for Action, the activist group that grew out of President Obama’s 2012 campaign, plans what it calls a ‘major day of action’ next month to gather support for the bipartisan Gang of Eight comprehensive immigration reform bill.”

POLITICAL ACTIVITY AND NEWS CORP. DEAL. Story here. “As part of the deal, News Corp said it would adopt enhanced corporate governance procedures – including a policy to disclose to its shareholders political contributions made directly by the company.”

CHAIR CONTRIBUTIONS. USAT. “In the first three months of Congress, newly installed House committee chairmen collectively saw a 74% increase in donations from special-interest political action committees from the same period in the last Congress, a USA TODAY analysis shows.”

BACHMANN UPDATE. Here. “Congresswoman Michele Bachmann knew of and approved payments to her 2012 presidential campaign manager in Iowa but did not know the arrangement may have violated the state’s Senate ethics rules, according to an affidavit from her former chief of staff.”

CISPA LOBBYING. Link. “Activists and Internet users protesting the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act – a cybersecurity bill that passed the House of Representatives Thursday – have spun the battle as big business interests versus the privacy of individual citizens. If lobbying dollars are anything to go by, they’re right: Pro-CISPA businesses and interests have spent 140 times more money on lobbying than anti-CISPA interests, according to the Sunlight Foundation.”

CT: LOBBYIST ISSUE. Link. ”The hospital lawyers point out that Wright is not only the lobbyist for Fairpay, but he’s also chairman of the state’s Workers’ Compensation Advisory Board. It’s an unpaid, non-voting position with no binding authority — but, in the hospital lawyers’ opinion, it puts him too close to government decision-makers whose actions may affect Fairpay’s fortunes.”

IL: EMANUEL DEFENDS DONATIONS. Trib. “Mayor Rahm Emanuel today defended accepting tens of thousands of dollars in political donations from hotel developers who need the approval of his administration for their projects.”

NY: ETHICS BOARD UPDATE. Story here. “Gov. Andrew Cuomo is replacing the chairwoman of the troubled state ethics board he created more than a year ago.”

NY: CFR PUSH. Story here. “A coalition supporting public financing of state election campaigns is gearing up for a new ad push targeting the state Senate, sources say.”

PA: CFR BILL UPDATE. Here. “The Pennsylvania Senate recently unanimously approved bills which state Sen. Bob Mensch says will improve and expedite access to lobbying disclosure and campaign finance data, and create an online voter registration system.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

Good morning, here are Monday’s political law links

INAUGURATION FUNDRAISING.  The Hill.  “President Obama raised more than $43 million for his second inauguration, with corporations, unions and other interest groups contributing $18 million, according to a new Federal Election Commission (FEC) report.”

BIPARTISAN CFR.  The Hill.  “Sens. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) are poised to unveil legislation to reform the country’s much-maligned campaign finance rules.”

KOCHS EXPLORING NEWSPAPER PURCHASES.  Althouse.  “What is the frightening scenario? That so much money is involved that some speakers are far more powerful than others? But isn’t that gigantic power needed to counterbalance the most powerful speaker of all, the government? And unlike the government, news and entertainment media can’t make us consume their product.”

SAME SEX, SOCIALIST WEEK.  The agenda for Thursday’s Federal Election Commission meeting is online here.

STAND BY YOUR AD AND RICIN THREAT.  Story here.  “Both letters said: ‘To see a wrong and not expose it, is to become a silent partner to its continuance.’ Both were signed, ‘I am KC and I approve this message.'”

NJ:  CFR OVERHAUL.  Story here.  “Senate Democrats this week plan to introduce a major overhaul of the state’s campaign finance laws that would force political candidates and advocacy groups to disclose the donors behind every penny they receive, The Star-Ledger has learned.”

PA:  MORE CFR NEEDED.  Inquirer.  “There should be full and rapid disclosure online of all campaign and personal finances by candidates, elected officials, and anyone else with his or her hands on the government’s purse strings.”

VA:  FERRARI FOR GOV.  The Post. “When the July vacation ended, the McDonnell family borrowed a Ferrari owned by Star Scientific’s chief executive Jonnie R. Williams Sr. for the three-hour ride back to Richmond. The model had a retail price of $190,000.”

VA:  POST ON GOV.  Here.  “But why would the governor, whose ethics record over a long career in public service was previously unblemished, put himself in such a compromising position?”

VT:  SETTLEMENT.  Story here.  “The settlement, announced Friday, comes in response to a lawsuit filed by the state Attorney General’s Office against Dubie and the RGA, accusing them of illegally coordinating campaign efforts.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.