Category Archives: campaigns

“GOP-affiliated group intervenes in Democratic primary for US Senate seat in North Carolina”

February 7, 2020, 7:42 amcampaignsRick Hasen

CNN: The first significant ad buy for state Sen. Erica Smith, a Democratic candidate for US Senate in North Carolina, appears to be backed by Republicans.Faith and Power, a new political action committee with ties to Republicans, formally… Continue reading

Washington Examiner Newspaper Sells Its Mailing List to Trump Campaign/RNC For Fundraising Blast, Then Writes Article About Blast Without Revealing This Fact

February 7, 2020, 7:25 amcampaign finance, campaignsRick Hasen

Dave Levinthal thread starts here: 1/ A short thread about a news organization, the Trump campaign and a fundraising message …On Thursday, my colleague @JimSmall received a garden variety campaign solicitation from the Trump Make America Great Again Committee, a… Continue reading

“The Billion-Dollar Disinformation Campaign to Reelect the President; How new technologies and techniques pioneered by dictators will shape the 2020 election”

February 6, 2020, 7:57 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

Deep dive by McKay Coppins in The Atlantic.

“Candidate Privacy”

February 5, 2020, 3:37 pmcampaignsRick Hasen

Rebecca Green has posted this draft on SSRN (forthcoming, Washington Law Review). Here is the abstract: In the United States, we have long accepted that candidates for public office who have voluntarily stepped into the public eye sacrifice claims to… Continue reading

“Tool to Help Journalists Spot Doctored Images Is Unveiled by Jigsaw”

February 5, 2020, 3:30 pmcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

NYT: A doctored, phony image of President Barack Obama shaking hands with President Hassan Rouhani of Iran. A real photograph of a Muslim girl at a desk doing her homework with Donald J. Trump looming in the background on television.It… Continue reading

RNC Sending Misleading Fundraising Mailers Designed to Look Like Official Census Forms in Northern California

February 5, 2020, 3:28 pmcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

SacBee: Some Northern California voters are receiving documents that resemble U.S. Census forms, but they are in fact fundraising appeals from the Republican National Committee.The document, printed on heavy paper, is labeled “2020 Congressional District Census,” with the words “DO… Continue reading

“A Trump ally’s ‘$25,000 cash giveaway’ for black voters could mean legal trouble”

February 3, 2020, 5:43 pmcampaigns, chicanery, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

Donald Sherman WaPo oped.

“Bloomberg Fueled His Campaign With $200 Million From His Own Fortune”

February 1, 2020, 10:26 amcampaign finance, campaigns, Plutocrats UnitedRick Hasen

NYT: Michael R. Bloomberg put more than $200 million of his personal fortune into his presidential campaign by the end of December, with the overwhelming bulk of that sum going to a mammoth advertising campaign on television and online, according… Continue reading

“Burr backs Trump lawyer claim on foreign dirt”

January 30, 2020, 11:52 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

Politico: Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-N.C.) said on Thursday he has “no problem” with a White House lawyer’s argument that American politicians can accept damaging information on their opponents from a foreign country — a proposal that shocked… Continue reading

Bipartisan House Ethics Warning About Members and Their Staffs Circulating Deep Fakes

January 29, 2020, 8:22 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

New memo (via Brian Svoboda): However, intentional distortions of audio and/or visual representations can be far more damaging. Members have a duty, and a First Amendment right, to contribute to the public discourse, including through parody and satire. However,… Continue reading

“The Technology 202: Pinterest bans misinformation about voting and the census”

January 29, 2020, 8:14 amcampaigns, chicaneryRick Hasen

WaPo reports.

“Trump allies are handing out cash to black voters”

January 29, 2020, 8:03 amcampaigns, tax law and election lawRick Hasen

Politico: Allies of Donald Trump have begun holding events in black communities where organizers lavish praise on the president as they hand out tens of thousands of dollars to lucky attendees.The first giveaway took place last month in Cleveland,… Continue reading

“Trump’s Digital Advantage Is Freaking Out Democratic Strategists”

January 29, 2020, 7:58 amcampaignsRick Hasen

Tom Edsall in the NYT: If you attend an evangelical or a Catholic Church, a women’s rights march or a political rally of any kind, especially in a seriously contested state, the odds are that your cellphone ID number,… Continue reading