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Tag Archives: open records

Campaign Finance: but, wait, there’s more

07 Friday Sep 2018

Posted by Michael Bersin in campaign finance

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

campaign finance, CLEAN Missouri, initiative, lobbying reform, Missouri Ethics Commision, open records, redistricting reform

A 501(c)(4) using its evil power for good.

Today at the Missouri Ethics Commission in support of the initiative (Amendment 1) for campaign finance, lobbying, legislative open records, and redistricting reform:

C161298 09/07/2018 CLEAN Missouri Action Now Initiative 1717 West Loop S Houston TX 77027 9/6/2018 $300,000.00

[emphasis added]

Action Now Initiative. Ah, a 501(c)(4) willing to spend money to make itself obsolete. They have a rather sparse web site:

That’s it.

Previously:

Campaign Finance: teaching your children well (August 20, 2018)

Campaign Finance: the same fight (August 27, 2018)

Campaign Finance: getting schooled (August 28, 2018)

Campaign Finance: it all adds up (August 30, 2018)

Campaign Finance: it all adds up

30 Thursday Aug 2018

Posted by Michael Bersin in campaign finance

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

campaign finance, CLEAN Missouri, Ethics Reform, lobbying, missouri, Missouri Ethics Commission, open records, redistricting reform

Today at the Missouri Ethics Commission in support of a PAC in Missouri formed to oppose ethics reform (including redistricting reform) petitions which became the CLEAN Missouri initiative (Proposition 1) on the November ballot:

C180099 08/30/2018 Advance Missouri Missouri Republican Party 514 E High Street Suite 31 Jefferson City MO 65101 8/30/2018 $12,000.00

[emphasis added]

Why are we not surprised?

In the past:

C180099 04/30/2018 Advance Missouri Liberty Alliance 7509 NW Tiffany Spring Parkway Ste 300 Kansas City MO 64153 4/30/2018 $12,201.09

C180099 06/01/2018 Advance Missouri Fair Lines America Inc. 2308 Mount Vernon Ave Ste 716 Alexandria VA 22301 6/1/2018 $50,000.00

[emphasis added]

Fair Lines America? What’s that:

[….]On the surface, not much is known about Fair Lines America. The group hosted a workshop on redistricting at the December 2017 conference of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative, corporate lobbying group with a history advocating anti-voter legislation and strong ties to industrialists Charles and David Koch and their political network. Fair Lines America’s connection to ALEC gives it credentials within the conservative movement, but ALEC’s description of the workshop did not give any details on who they are.

A bit more digging reveals that the Alexandria, VA mailing address Fair Lines America listed on Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution’s campaign finance report, P.O. BOX 26141, matches the address used by several super PACs that paid for attack ads directed at Donald Trump in the early stages of the 2016 presidential campaign. The PO Box and the ads were an issue in the 2016 Republican presidential primary and the super PACs were found to be affiliated with Trump foes Ted Cruz and Carly Fiorina.

The PO Box also is connected to Christopher Marston, a Republican attorney, and his campaign finance compliance firm, Election CFO. Among the firm’s listed clients are several Republican members of Congress and political committees.

Fair Lines America also has Twitter account (@FairLinesUSA), although it has never tweeted. At this writing, the Twitter account has exactly one follower: the National Republican Redistricting Trust. This is a group set up by Republican officials to help the GOP in the 2021 redistricting process. According to a Politico article that announced the groups’ formation, the organization “will focus on data and legal efforts” to challenge Democrat-drawn districts. To completely conceal its donors, the National Republican Redistricting Trust is registered as a legal trust instead of a nonprofit or political action committee.[….]

The twitter account:

Fair Lines America @FairLinesUSA A non-partisan, non-profit supporting fair and legal redistricting through education, demography, data analysis, litigation, and reform.
Joined April 2018

You think they wrote that description with a straight face? Just asking.

Some of the (present) seventeen followers of that Twitter account:

Chris Young @ChrisYoungNV ‏ Secure Nevada’s Future | @GOP National Field Director ’16 | @GOP LA State Director ’14 | Team Nevada ’12 | @BobbyJindal ’07 & ’11 | Organizer |

Bobby Jindal, eh? That inspires great confidence.

Stephanie Bell @stephaniesbell ‏ Wife. Mom. Community Builder. Advocate. Lawyer. Conservative. ISTJ. #SoBoCo

Fair Districts La @fairdistrictsla ‏ Fair Districts Louisiana is a grass-roots, non-partisan alliance of citizens advocating for redistricting reform.

Riiiiight.

Trey Trainor @txelectionlaw ‏ Husband, father of six, Catholic, conservative. Advise elected officials, political organizations, and candidates on state and federal election regulations.

StLCountyRepublicans @StLCountyRepub ‏St. Louis County Republicans. Happenings and More. Retweet if you like. Grassroots. News and information. You decide.

Alrighty then.

NRRT @TheNRRT ‏ The National Republican Redistricting Trust

They could form a right wingnut infinite feedback loop. Oh, wait, the Faux New Channel already exists.

Campaign Finance: teaching your children well

20 Monday Aug 2018

Posted by Michael Bersin in campaign finance, Missouri General Assembly

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

campaign finance, CLEAN Missouri, initiative, lobbying, missouri, Missouri Ethics Commission, open records, Redistricting, reform, sunshine

Today at the Missouri Ethics Commission from educators in support of the initiative (Amendment 1) for campaign finance, lobbying, legislative open records, and redistricting reform:

C161298 08/20/2018 CLEAN Missouri Missouri National Education Association Ballot Issue Crisis Fund 1810 E. Elm st Jefferson city MO 65107 8/18/2018 $250,000.00

[emphasis added]

If teachers are for it you can bet a lot of money that right wingnut republicans are against it.

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