The Hill: Defeated Democrat sues the IRS for allowing ‘mad scientist’ campaign ads
-By Bernie Becker
February 19, 2013- A former Democratic congressional candidate and a government watchdog are suing the IRS, claiming the agency has allowed political groups to flout campaign finance laws.
In their lawsuit, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and David Gill, who lost a razor-thin election in 2012, say that the failure of the IRS to keep so-called 501(c)(4) groups out of politics has allowed a flood of anonymous money into the political process.
“Disgracefully, the IRS has sat on its hands for the last two election cycles while 501(c)(4) groups have been formed expressly to run negative attack ads funded by anonymous donors,” Melanie Sloan, CREW’s executive director, said in a statement.
“When called out, the IRS has said only that it is ‘aware’ of the public’s concern. Now the IRS can explain its deplorable inaction in federal court.”
AllGov: Federal Judge Approves Minnesota Law Banning Campaign Lies
February 4, 2013- Minnesota’s law prohibiting lying in political campaigns has been upheld by a federal judge.
The Minnesota Fair Campaign Practices Act made it a gross misdemeanor for someone to intentionally prepare, disseminate, or broadcast political advertising or campaign material “that is designed or tends to elect, injure, promote, or defeat a candidate for nomination or election to a public office or to promote or defeat a ballot question, that is false, and that the person knows is false.”
The statute was challenged five years ago by the 281 CARE Committee and the Citizens for Quality Education, which campaign against ballot initiatives that raise taxes or fees for school district funding.
The plaintiffs claimed the law violated their free-speech rights and restricted their ability to participate in political debate. They lost their first trial before a federal judge in Minneapolis. But the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the ruling in May 2011.
That sent the matter to U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery, who ruled in favor of the defendants, two county attorneys and the state attorney general.
Think Progress: Watchdog: Karl Rove And His Crossroads GPS Broke Election Law By Failing To Disclose Donors
-By Josh Israel
November 15, 2012- The non-partisan Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) filed complaints Thursday with both the Federal Election Commission (FEC) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) alleging that Karl Rove and his secretive Crossroads GPS violated election law and may have engaged in a criminal conspiracy to do so.
World Banoosh: Voters and FBI put on alert: Massive deceptions found in the No on 37 campaign, all documented
By Mr.M
November 7, 2012- Campaign supporters of genetically manipulated foods could soon find themselves involved in a federal criminal investigation, related to their own manipulation of voters in California’s hotly debated Proposition 37.
Even as ballots are still being cast in the battle over the measure, which would require labeling for genetically modified (GM) foods, the fight is taking an unexpected turn – straight into FBI headquarters. The agency reportedly contacted an attorney for the CA Right to Know campaign, in response to an official complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Justice on October 18, which cited numerous, and likely criminal, actions by the “No on 37″ campaign.