|
Wednesday, 31 January 2007 |
|
Texas prosecutors are appealing a ruling that former US Rep Tom DeLay cannot be charged with conspiring to break Texas campaign finance laws. DeLay's lawyers argue that even though Texas law clearly prohibits the use of corporate funds in campaigns, the laws about conspiracy were changed after DeLay allegedly did help funnel $190,000 in corporate money into Texas campaigns. In their brief, the proscecutors argue: "The plain language ... is clear and unambiguous: the offense of criminal conspiracy applies to all felony offenses defined by Texas law, including the offense of unlawfully making a corporate political contribution,”
The state level candidates that DeLay helped elect by using corporate funds subsequently orchestrated a massive redrawing of congressional districts that was intened to help Republicans maintain a lock on congress. It did help Republicans pick up seats in the 2004 elections, but as we know, they lost the House in 2006. |
|
|
Tuesday, 30 January 2007 |
|
Representatives Chris Shays and Marty Meehan are introducing legislation to repair the federal system of voluntary spending limits on presidential campaigns. Their proposal would match contributions of up to $200 with four time the amount in public funds. So, if you give a candidate who participates in the system $100, they get another $400 in public money. This would allow candidates who agree to spending limits and raise money from ordinary citizens to compete with candidates who raise large contributions of up to $2000 from fat cats. See this story for more details. |
|
|
Tuesday, 23 January 2007 |
|
Here's a Chicago Tribune article anticipating that to be taken seriously, presidential candidates will need to raise $50 million in the next year. The good news is that increasingly, candidates will be looking on-line to reach small donors to help them reach this goal. The bad news, as the article details, is that backing from the super-rich is still a prerequisite: To wage a serious presidential campaign in 2008, the ante is $50 million raised by Dec. 31 of this year, said one adviser to Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). And that is just to get a place at the table.
Those are daunting figures. To make the $100 million mark in a year, a candidate must bring in an average of nearly $2 million a week. That's $274,000 a day, including Sundays and holidays, all of it raised in increments legally limited to no more than $2,100 per person.
Start late or fall behind and the burden increases. "Every single day, the biggest part of your day is fundraising. Fundraising is going to take up more of your time than sleep if you're a candidate," said Democratic strategist Tad Devine, who advised presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) in 2004. ... Billionaire investor Warren Buffett and Hollywood moguls Jeffrey Katzenberg, David Geffen and Steven Spielberg are among past supporters of Obama's political action committee, Hopefund. Billionaire philanthropist George Soros, an early supporter of Obama's U.S. Senate bid and Hopefund donor, demonstrated his backing for the presidential campaign by sending the maximum legal contribution--$2,100--within hours of Obama's announcement, according to Soros spokesman Michael Vachon.
These high profile donors are helpful because they also bring with them potential networks of additional contributors.
|
|
|
|
<< Start < Prev 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Next > End >>
|
| Results 29 - 32 of 50 |
