Category Archives: legislation and legislatures

“Rep. Gutierrez pays Chicago lobbyist with tax dollars”

June 6, 2013, 7:44 amlegislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

USA Today: Over the past 10 years, Rep. Luis Gutierrez has paid a Chicago lobbyist more than $500,000 in taxpayer funds to work side-by-side with his congressional staff. Lobbyist Doug Scofield, Gutierrez’s former chief of staff, can train staff,… Continue reading

“New NRA-Backed Kansas Law Seeks to Limit Lobbying”

June 5, 2013, 4:34 pmlegislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

AP: “Fresh off a series of legislative victories across the country, the National Rifle Association has launched a new effort starting in gun-friendly Kansas seeking to clamp down on the use of government money to lobby on gun-control issues.”

“Judicial Picks Set the Stage for a Battle in the Senate”

June 5, 2013, 7:29 amlegislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

NYT reports.

“Did Reid Break His Word To McConnell About The Nuclear Option?”

June 5, 2013, 7:26 amlegislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

TPM reports.

“State Super-Minorities Lead to ‘Lone Ranger’ Movie Trip”

June 4, 2013, 8:56 amlegislation and legislatures, political parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

Bloomberg: “In a few states, those that are deeply Republican-red or Democratic-blue, the partisan hue is so one-sided that it’s creating super-minorities in some Senate chambers, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.”

Quote of the Day

May 29, 2013, 7:41 amlegislation and legislaturesRick Hasen

“Obama’s second-term window is closing.” Carrie Johnson, NPR, “Senators Tussle Over Proposal to ‘Unpack’ Key D.C. Court”

Damning with Faint Praise Dept

May 29, 2013, 7:38 amlegislation and legislatures, political parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

NYT: “Pillory Congress all you want as do-nothing or dysfunctional, as its critics often have. But in one respect, lawmakers in the Capitol are remarkably productive: they name post offices like nobody’s business. A new report from the Congressional… Continue reading

Is Boehner a Weak House Speaker?

May 27, 2013, 7:19 pmlegislation and legislatures, political parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

Vandehei and Allen: “So, yes, Boehner by recent historic standards and measures is a relatively weak speaker right now. But, in fairness, it’s not clear a more bullying or forceful leader would fare much better with this gang of… Continue reading

“The Seventeenth Amendment and Federalism in an Age of National Political Parties”

May 27, 2013, 6:37 pmlegislation and legislatures, political partiesRick Hasen

David Schleicher has posted this draft on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Despite it being the constitutional amendment that most altered the design of the federal government, and despite recent efforts by many prominent figures to repeal it,… Continue reading

Quote of the Day

May 24, 2013, 12:33 pmcampaign finance, legislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

“I won’t dispute for one second the problems of a system that demands immense amount of fund-raisers by its legislators…It’s appalling, it’s disgusting, it’s wasteful and it opens the possibility of conflicts of interest and corruption. It’s unfortunately the world… Continue reading

“Banks’ Lobbyists Help in Drafting Financial Bills”

May 24, 2013, 7:36 amlegislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

Front page NYT: Bank lobbyists are not leaving it to lawmakers to draft legislation that softens financial regulations. Instead, the lobbyists are helping to write it themselves. One bill that sailed through the House Financial Services Committee this… Continue reading

Quote of the Day

May 23, 2013, 10:01 pmlegislation and legislatures, political parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

“What I fear is the majority leader is working his way toward breaking his word to the Senate and to the American people, and blowing up this institution…He wants to have no debate…Do what I say when I say it.… Continue reading

“Kill Bill”

May 23, 2013, 7:33 amcampaign finance, legislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

Tom Edsall reviews the literature on lobbying and rent-seeking for corporations. (I cover more of this in some detail in this Stanford Law Review article).

“McCain Looks to Defuse ‘Nuclear’ Threat”

May 23, 2013, 7:18 amlegislation and legislatures, political parties, political polarizationRick Hasen

Roll Call: Sen. John McCain finds himself once again pushing his colleagues to avoid giving fodder to Democrats seeking to use the “nuclear option” to change Senate rules with a simple majority. The Arizona Republican’s latest endeavor is to persuade… Continue reading