Monthly Archives: May 2012

The Big News in Jeff Toobin’s Must-Read New Yorker Piece on Citizens United: Justice Souter’s Unpublished Dissent

May 14, 2012, 7:40 amcampaign finance, Supreme CourtRick Hasen

Jeff Toobin’s piece, a preview of his forthcoming book, The Oath, provides inside details on the Court’s workings related to Citizens United which I have not seen reported anywhere else (and some of which might be contested). Most… Continue reading

“John Edwards defense: prosecution theory OKs campaign-paid abortions”

May 14, 2012, 7:18 amcampaign finance, campaigns, chicanery, John EdwardsRick Hasen

Must-read Gerstein.

“West Virginia frets over felon’s performance”

May 14, 2012, 7:15 amUncategorizedRick Hasen

Charlie Mahtesian blogs.

Tom Edsall on the Changing Nature of the Lobbying Industry

May 14, 2012, 7:09 amcampaign finance, legislation and legislatures, lobbyingRick Hasen

Here, at Campaign Stops.

“Study: Public Financing Contributes to Greater Diversity of Participation in NYC Elections; New Analysis by Campaign Finance Institute and Brennan Center Finds Striking Differences between the Donors to City and State Elections”

May 14, 2012, 7:07 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

This press release begins: A new report jointly released today by the Campaign Finance Institute of Washington DC and the Brennan Center for Justice at the NYU School of Law offers powerful evidence that New York City’s public financing system… Continue reading

“One-Man Florida SuperPAC Finances Attack on Obama in Ohio”

May 14, 2012, 7:05 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

Bloomberg reports.

“Crossroads Generation, New GOP-Backed Super PAC, Aims To Attract Young Voters”

May 14, 2012, 7:02 amcampaign financeRick Hasen

AP reports.

“For Tea Party, Focus Turns to Senate and Shake-Up”

May 13, 2012, 9:56 pmlegislation and legislatures, political polarizationRick Hasen

NYT reports.

“Three justices miffed over rejected Judicial Commission appointment”

May 13, 2012, 9:55 pmjudicial electionsRick Hasen

The latest from Wisconsin: “The animosity surrounding the state Supreme Court flared again Friday when Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson and two colleagues protested a decision by the court’s conservative wing to reject the reappointment of the chairman of the Judicial… Continue reading

Lessig Says Roemer Would Pledge Not to Be Spoiler in Presidential Election If He Has No Realistic Chance of Winning

May 13, 2012, 9:49 pmalternative voting systems, third partiesRick Hasen

See here. “Though he says he’s in this race to win, if he became the Americans Elect candidate, he has now committed to a crucial promise: if at the end of the race, Roemer writes, ‘I discover I have… Continue reading

“Oregon Secretary of State Kate Brown’s office bungled enforcement of state election law in Portland schools case”

May 13, 2012, 9:45 pmelection administrationRick Hasen

The Oregonian reports.

“Voter apathy — not Florida’s new voting laws — may hurt turnout in 2012”

May 13, 2012, 9:45 pmThe Voting Wars, voter registrationRick Hasen

Must-read Miami Herald: This isn’t Bull Connor siccing German shepherds on people. It’s also nothing like Florida’s Jim Crow-era constitutional provision denying former felons the right to vote in a state where more than half the prison population is black.… Continue reading

“2012 election drowning in secret money”

May 13, 2012, 9:42 pmcampaign financeRick Hasen

Michael Kirkland has written this UPI column.

“Democrats’ Fund Taps Corporate Donors for Convention”

May 11, 2012, 10:11 pmcampaign finance, political partiesRick Hasen

WSJ: “Democrats have trumpeted their ban on corporate donations to their national convention this summer, saying that it shows they are free from the influence of special interests. But through a special fund, convention planners are accepting millions of dollars… Continue reading