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IRS Almost Never Audits ‘Dark Money’ Nonprofits, Documents Show
When Republicans won control of the U.S. Senate in November, they could thank dozens of conservative "dark money" nonprofit groups…
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Victory For POE, VR: Electronic Voting Machines Shutting Down Nationwide
After years of controversy and concerns for election integrity, electronic voting machines may finally be relegated to the ranks of…
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Court Strikes Down GOP-Backed Voting Restrictions In North Carolina
WASHINGTON -- A federal appeals court on Wednesday ordered a lower court to block two new voting restrictions in North…
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Sheldon Adelson Gives $10 Million To Karl Rove Group, Just One-Fifteenth Of 2012 Contributions
A $10 million donation seems like a hefty amount of cash for the average political donor. But for casino magnate…
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Judge Slams Voter Suppression Law — ‘Why Does The State Of North Carolina Not Want People To Vote?’
Voting rights advocates in North Carolina caught a lucky break on Thursday, where it was revealed that the panel of three judges who would consider that state’s comprehensive voter suppression law included one Clinton appointee, Judge Diana Gribbon Motz, and two Obama appointees, Judges James Wynn and Henry Floyd. Last month, a George W. Bush…
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Democracy For All Amendment Press Conference
On the evening of September 8, 2014, the US Senate voted 78-18 in favor of proceeding with a constitutional amendment that would overturn the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision. Earlier that afternoon, the lead sponsors of the bill in the House and Senate held a press conference outside the Capitol. VR’s cameras were there…
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Court Denies Karl Rove’s Request To Take Over For The FEC
Karl Rove is going to have to sit in the back seat on this FEC lawsuit, whether he likes it or not. Awhile back I wrote about the lawsuit Public Citizen and ProtectOurElections.org filed against the FEC for failing to do what it’s supposed to do when it comes to these SuperPACs. In essence, the FEC agreed not to…
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Karl Rove May Yet Face The Music Over Crossroads GPS Campaign Activities
Public Citizen and Protect Our Elections are taking aim at the FEC for dropping the ball on Rove’s failure to disclose donors. Earlier this year, FEC Commissioner Ann Ravel was so frustrated by the partisanship within the panel that she took to the op-ed pages of the New York Times to shake her fist at the way her Republican…
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US Attorney files Amicus Brief in ACLU Voting Rights Case
MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The Department of Justice today intervened in the ACLU of Wisconsin voting rights case, filing an amicus brief in opposition to the voter ID law. The case is currently at the 7thCircuit Court of Appeals. The 37-page brief said, in part: Regarding the “constitutional claim, the district court credited plaintiffs’ evidence demonstrating that, under…
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The Atlantic: If You Thought Citizens United Was Bad, Wait for This Supreme Court Case
A Supreme Court ruling in favor of Shaun McCutcheon would set the stage for totally eliminating remaining campaign-finance laws.
-By Norm Ornstein
September 26, 2013- It is tempting to think that there is only one issue hitting Washington these days: the coming apocalypse over a government shutdown and a possible default. It is, to be sure, the Big One, and it should dominate our discussion and analysis. But there are many other issues looming out there that deserve broader focus and attention. One is the farm bill, a case study in dysfunction and chaos over the past three years which has devastated farmers hit by the most significant drought since the Great Depression and which, if unresolved by the end of the month, could cause milk prices to skyrocket, among other things.
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AlterNet: Florida GOP-Led Voter Fraud Investigation Finds Nothing—Except GOP Fraud
Nice try.
-By Rod Bastanmehr
September 5, 2013- An investigation into the issue of voter registration fraud in the Sunshine State initiated by Florida Repulicans has unearthed no evidence of wrongdoing—except on the part of the GOP. Florida's Secretary of State Ken Detzner, prompted the state's Department of Law Enforcement to research the alleged problem, setting its sights on the Florida New Majority, an established progressive organization know for advocating the spread of democratic participation across the country. The organization was vital in registering scores of minorities last year—something which Republicans generally don't like.
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Center For Public Integrity: West Virginia races primed for super PAC activity
Newly created 'West Virginians for Results' has GOP connection
-By Michael Beckel
September 4, 2013- A newly created super PAC appears to have its sights set on West Virginia, a state where Republicans in 2014 hope to pick up both a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate.
A group called “West Virginians for Results” submitted paperwork to the Federal Election Commission on August 29, stating it “intends to make independent expenditures,” though it doesn’t specify in which races it plans to be active and the website it lists is not yet functional.
The address used by West Virginians for Results on its FEC filing is the Washington, D.C., office of the law firm Clark Hill PLC. The super PAC’s treasurer is listed as James “Jim” Tyrrell III, a Clark Hill attorney who did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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Talking Points Memo: Ginsburg Calls Out Roberts: ‘One Of The Most Activist Courts In History’
-By Tom Kludt
August 26, 2013- Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg signaled that she is in no hurry to step down from what she described as "one of the most activist courts in history" in a candid interview published Sunday.
Ginsburg told The New York Times that, despite calls from some on the let for her to retire before President Barack Obama leaves office so he can name a liberal replacement, she intends to stay on the court "“as long as I can do the job full steam, and that, at my age, is not predictable.” Appointed by former President Bill Clinton in 1993, Ginsburg has survived cancer twice.
She also opened up the current court under Chief Justice John Roberts, who led the majority in striking down a crucial part of the 1965 Voting Rights Act in June. Ginsburg said “if it’s measured in terms of readiness to overturn legislation, this is one of the most activist courts in history.”