[Political Activity Law]

DUES IN THE NEWS. RC. “Several House members have reported paying for membership dues to luxurious social clubs from their campaign coffers, expenditures the Federal Election Commission automatically deems as prohibited personal use.”

COMPLAINT FOR SUPER PAC AD. WFB. “Former Colorado governor John Hickenlooper (D.) may have violated campaign finance laws by coordinating an advertisement with an outside super PAC backing his Senate campaign, according to a complaint filed with the Federal Election Commission.”

DISCLAIMER ISSUE. HN. “A political ad running on television for U.S. Rep. Steve Watkins is missing an element that the Federal Election Commission requires candidates to include.”

CHARITABLE GIVING. FLP. “Mark Foley is continuing to wind down his congressional campaign account, as he donated more than $200,000 to local charities between April 1 and June 30.”

FILING QUESTIONS. HILL. “The Federal Election Commission (FEC) will investigate ‘false or fictitious’ filings for Kanye West’s presidential campaign after the rapper announced his presidential bid on Saturday.”

TN: FINE FOR VIOLATIONS. TNN. “Campaign finance officials on Wednesday followed through on a plan to levy a $10,500 penalty against former House Speaker Glen Casada after an audit determined he failed to adequately retain receipts for roughly $100,000 in expenditures.”

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FEC UPDATE. GOVEXEC. “With four months until the November 2020 elections, the federal agency responsible for enforcing the nation’s campaign finance laws will once again lose the ability to do most of its job.”

PAC LAUNCH. HILL. “Hundreds of former members of the George W. Bush administration have formed a super PAC to support former Vice President Joe Biden, saying they are alarmed by President Trump’s conduct in office.”

NEW HIGH. NYT. “President Trump’s campaign said Wednesday that it had $295 million in the bank, a formidable financial advantage.”

IL: MONEY RESPONSE. DRN. “Illinois Rising Action, a dark money super PAC, is running a TV ad against Gov. J.B. Pritzker. The group is reportedly putting $1 million behind the spot on both cable and broadcast over two weeks.”

MT: BALLOT ALLEGATIONS. GFT. “The Montana Republican Party and two minor party qualification committees violated state campaign finance laws in a successful effort to qualify the Green Party of Montana for the primary ballot without the Green Party’s knowledge, the commissioner of political practices said Friday.”

NC: LOBBYIST POSITIVE. WRAL. “State lawmakers had more questions than answers Wednesday after learning that an unidentified lobbyist tested positive for coronavirus after meeting with lawmakers.”

VT: COMPANY ADS IN THE NEWS. VTD. “Milne has recently appeared in television ads for his travel agency. The Democrats allege Milne is spending corporate funds ‘in service of boosting his name recognition for political gains.'”

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SUPER PAC BOOST. CNN. “A new political group this week launched a Spanish-language ad attacking John Hickenlooper’s rival in the Colorado Democratic primary, the latest sign of growing concerns about the former governor’s prospects in a race that’s crucial to Democratic hopes of seizing the US Senate from Republicans.”

SUPER PAC LAUNCH. POL. “The original super PAC supporting Joe Biden is getting back on the airwaves, pushing into the 2020 ad wars with spots praising Biden’s economic record.”

LAWSUIT ON AD. HILL. “President Trump’s reelection campaign is suing the largest Democratic super PAC for running an ad that it says misrepresents the president’s remarks about the coronavirus.”

$225 MILLION FINE. FCC. “FCC proposes a $225 million fine against Rising Eagle, a Texas-based telemarketer that apparently made over 1 billion health insurance sales robocalls to American consumers including many on the Do Not Call registry.”

NJ: CASINO LICENCEES CASE. NJLJ. “Legislatures must take great care in crafting statutory schemes that regulate political activity so that the statute employs means closely drawn to protect an important government interest.”

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