[EL] ELB News and Commentary 8/21/13
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Tue Aug 20 21:47:08 PDT 2013
"Top Democrat files suit against IRS over tax-exemption rules"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54614>
Posted on August 20, 2013 9:45 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54614>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Washington Post
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/federal_government/top-democrat-files-suit-against-irs-over-tax-exemption-rules/2013/08/20/a88a3d52-09d1-11e3-b87c-476db8ac34cd_story.html>:
A top House Democrat plans to file a lawsuit in federal district
court Wednesday challenging the Internal Revenue Service's
interpretation of a law that governs whether groups qualify for
tax-exempt status as so-called social welfare organizations.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), the ranking member of the House
Budget Committee, said Tuesday that he will serve as lead plaintiff
in the case, which addresses one of the main concerns that surfaced
with the recent IRS targeting controversy
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/obama-denounces-reported-irs-targeting-of-conservative-groups/2013/05/13/a0185644-bbdf-11e2-97d4-a479289a31f9_story.html>:
differences between federal law and the IRS rules on eligibility for
501(c)(4) candidates.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22> | Comments Off
Gov't Files Brief Opposing Cert. in Ring (Abramoff) Bribery Case
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54611>
Posted on August 20, 2013 8:00 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54611>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
You can find it here
<http://www.justice.gov/osg/briefs/2013/0responses/2012-1462.resp.pdf>.
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Posted in bribery <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=54> | Comments Off
"Top Republican Lawyer Presses FEC To Limit Enforcement Actions by
Staff" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54608>
Posted on August 20, 2013 7:54 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54608>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Bloomberg BNA
<http://news.bna.com/mpdm/MPDMWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=35605439&vname=mpebulallissues&jd=a0e0z5y0j5&split=0>:
"A veteran Republican election lawyer and former commissioner on the
Federal Election Commission is pressing the FEC to adopt limits on
agency staff efforts to enforce campaign finance laws. The development
comes as the commission continues to debate possible changes to an
enforcement manual for FEC's Office of General Counsel (OGC). A letter
<http://op.bna.com/der.nsf/r?Open=sbay-9army2> supporting the proposed
limits on FEC staff was sent Aug. 19 by Thomas Josefiak, who served on
the commission in the 1980s and now works with the private law firm
Holtzman Vogel Josefiak PLLC, representing Republicans and conservative
organizations before the FEC. Josefiak's firm has represented some of
the biggest Republican-leaning political groups active in recent
elections, including American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS, which spent
a total of more than $176 million to help Republicans in the 2012 election."
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10> |
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Small Business Groups Urge SEC Disclosure
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54605>
Posted on August 20, 2013 4:12 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54605>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
See here <http://bit.ly/14euIsy> (via Politico's Morning Money
<http://www.politico.com/morningmoney/0813/morningmoney11469.html>).
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10> |
Comments Off
"Dueling Over Nonprofit Disclosure"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54602>
Posted on August 20, 2013 4:06 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54602>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Ciara Torres-Spelliscy blogs.
<http://www.brennancenter.org/blog/dueling-over-nonprofit-disclosure>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10> |
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"North Carolina Republicans Escalate Attacks on Student Voting"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54599>
Posted on August 20, 2013 3:59 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54599>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Ari Berman reports
<http://www.thenation.com/blog/175837/north-carolina-republicans-escalate-attack-student-voting#axzz2cYLSnZHS>
for The Nation.
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60> | Comments Off
WSJ's Taranto Attacks My Slate Piece on North Carolina
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54595>
Posted on August 20, 2013 3:53 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54595>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324108204579024942693167698.html>
(on my Slate piece)
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2013/08/north_carolina_s_speedy_vote_suppression_tactics_show_exactly_why_the_voting.html>.
I'll let others judge for themselves the soundness of his criticism.
I'll just point out then when he says "The Texas redistricting case
hasn't been decided yet..." he's confused about my reference. It was to
this already-decided suit <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=39233>. More on
the relevance of the finding here. <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=53465>
I also think it is interesting is that there's been a big shift now in
defense of laws aimed at making it harder to make people vote. The old
explanation was that these laws were aimed at fraud prevention or public
confidence. Now, with the voting rights act involved and claims of
racism, the argument is that these laws are aimed at hurting Democrats.
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Posted in The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, Voting
Rights Act <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15> | Comments Off
"IRS Documents Show Progressive Groups Also Targeted for More
Scrutiny, Levin Says" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54592>
Posted on August 20, 2013 11:36 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54592>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Bloomberg BNA Breaking News: "Internal Revenue Service training
materials relating to applications for tax exemption show that
progressive groups were singled out for additional scrutiny the same way
conservative groups were, House Ways and Means Committee ranking member
Sander Levin (D-Mich.) said Aug. 20 after receiving the documents from
the IRS." (IRS Letter
<http://democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/sites/democrats.waysandmeans.house.gov/files/IRS%20Letter%20to%20Levin%20August%2019%2C%202013.pdf>)
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22> | Comments Off
"Abbott: MALC Attorney's Actions 'Unethical'"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54589>
Posted on August 20, 2013 9:42 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=54589>
by Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Texas Tribune
<http://www.texastribune.org/2013/08/19/abbott-malc-attorneys-actions-are-unethical/>:
"Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott
<http://www.texastribune.org/directory/greg-abbott/> on Monday called a
lawyer for the Mexican American Legislative Caucus unethical for his
suggestion that people in the Rio Grande Valley attempt to vote without
a photo ID."
And an update to the story: "In a statement released Monday afternoon,
MALC attorney Jose Garza addressed Abbott's claims, and said he has
never encouraged anyone to violate the law."
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voter id
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9> | Comments Off
--
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
http://www.law.uci.edu/faculty/full-time/hasen/
http://electionlawblog.org
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