Monday’s political law links (7/16/12)

POST PUSH ON DISCLOSE ACT.   The Washington Post editorializes in support of the Disclose Act of 2012 here.

DISCLOSE DAY.  According to the Senate floor schedule for today, “Following disposition of the McNulty nomination, the Senate will resume Legislative Session and there will be 10 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled between the two Leaders or their designees prior to a roll call vote on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to Legislative Calendar #446, S.3369, the Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act. As a reminder, cloture was filed on the motion to proceed to S.3369 on Thursday, July 12th.”

ROFF OPPOSES DISCLOSE.  Here.  “On Monday the U.S. Senate is going to again take up the DISCLOSE Act, an effort the Democrats and their allies want to pass in order to be able to intimidate donors to the GOP, to Romney, and to conservative causes.”

MOVING WITHOUT MCCAIN.  The Hill.  “Whitehouse has been in negotiations with McCain in an effort to secure his backing but has so far unsuccessfully.”

LDA FILING REMINDER.  Here.  “The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, as amended by the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007, requires all active registrants to file quarterly lobbying activity reports with the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives and the Secretary of the U.S. Senate. The second quarter report is due Friday, July 20, 2012, covering April 1, 2012 through June 30, 2012.”

CAIN SUPER PAC NEWS.  Here.  “Between April and June, Cain Connections PAC donated $75,000 to Cain-operated political nonprofit group Cain Solutions, new federal filings show.”

D SUPER PAC NUMBERS.  Story here.  “Four prominent Democratic super PACs said Friday they’ve collectively raised $25 million during the year’s second quarter.”

SQUARE DONATIONS.  Here.  “Using the card-reading device that attaches to an iPhone or iPad, [a] candidate can accept on-the-spot donation at rallies and appearances—and Square’s new fund-raising feature allows campaigns to collect FEC-required information on a donor’s name, address, occupation, and employer.”

LIST ACCESS OK.  Story here.  “In a victory for Republicans, the federal government has agreed to let Florida use a law enforcement database to challenge people’s right to vote if they are suspected of not being U.S. citizens.”

MA CAMPAIGN RETURNS FUNDS.  Story here.  “House Speaker Chris Donovan’s congressional campaign said Saturday it has returned what it believes are all the questionable contributions tied to an alleged scheme to stop legislation at the state Capitol that would have imposed taxes on Connecticut roll-your-own tobacco shops.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Good morning, here are political law links for Thurs., 7/12/12

NEW DISCLOSE ACT.  The Hill.  “Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and eight other Senate Democrats proposed new legislation on Tuesday that seeks to counteract the 2010 Citizens United case in which the Supreme Court ruled that the government cannot limit political spending by corporations, unions or other groups.”  The Hill has a copy of the bill here.

GET ON THE BUS.  Roll Call.  “One K Street shop is taking to Tampa like rock stars, gassing up a luxury bus that it plans to use to ferry friends and clients to receptions during the Republican convention.”

REP. BERKLEY ON ETHICS ISSUES.  Politico.  “‘My only concern was for the health and well-being of the people of Nevada,’ Berkley said Monday in an umpteenth reiteration of her defense. ‘I couldn’t have lived with myself if I had stepped back. … They needed me.'”

WHAT THE MAYOR KNEW.  The Post.  “Mayor Vincent C. Gray knew in January that associates spent money on behalf of his successful 2010 election that was not properly reported, a violation of campaign finance laws, according to people with knowledge of the ongoing criminal investigation.”

MONEY MATTERS?  DOESN’T MATTER?  The Post.  “Obama probably will be similarly outspent in the end, but given the near-parity in bank accounts on both sides, it won’t make much difference.”

NEW LAURA RICKETTS SUPER PAC.  Story here.

HAVE A GREAT DAY.  The next set of links will be prepared on Monday.

Good morning, here are today’s political law links (7/11)

SEPTA LOBBYING REPORTS IN THE NEWS.  Story here.  “Federal officials have determined that SEPTA repeatedly violated regulations governing the disclosure of payments to its Washington lobbyists during the last five years. The agency could face fines of up to $100,000 for each instance.”

HOLDER ON ID.  The Post.  “‘It’s very telling that instead of making legal arguments in front of the court, the attorney general is making political speeches more than a thousand miles way,’ said Lucy Nashed, a spokeswoman for Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R).”

CONVENTION FUNDING FAULTED.  Story here.  “The Democratic National Convention, a three-day extravaganza in Charlotte designed to celebrate President Obama and boost his reelection campaign, is falling short of its fundraising goals.”

12 MONEY RACE.  Story here.  “Another Obama campaign official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to be candid, said Tuesday that although no major shake-up in the fundraising operation is being contemplated, the campaign remains deeply concerned about the super PACs aligned with Romney and will intensify its efforts on multiple fronts. In addition to pursuing serial donations from small-dollar contributors, it will double down on major donors who have yet to reach their legal maximum. The campaign also will aggressively pursue 2008 donors who have not given in 2012, the official said.”

HOUSE ETHICS MOVE.  The Times.  “The House ethics committee on Tuesday dismissed allegations that Representative Vern Buchanan, one of the wealthiest members of Congress, failed to properly disclose some of his financial holdings, but it is continuing to examine a more serious set of accusations against him centering on possible campaign finance violations.”

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

SHADOW CAMPAIGN IN DC ALLEGED.  Story here.  “A secret $653,000 effort funded by one of the District government’s most prominent contractors corrupted the 2010 mayoral race and helped Vincent C. Gray get elected, the city’s top federal prosecutor said Tuesday.”  A Post editorial appears here:  “Ms. Harris is the third person associated with Mr. Gray’s campaign to plead guilty in federal court. It’s pretty apparent she won’t be the last to be charged by prosecutors. Meanwhile, the mayor’s silence is inexcusable. He must explain not only how this spending could have escaped his notice but also what his dealings were with Mr. Thompson.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.