[EL] ELB News and Commentary 9/12/13

Wed Sep 11 21:00:34 PDT 2013

    "Exclusive: The Koch Bros. Secret Bank"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55200>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:56 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55200>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Politico 
<http://www.politico.com/story/2013/09/behind-the-curtain-exclusive-the-koch-brothers-secret-bank-96669.html>:

    An Arlington, Va.-based conservative group, whose existence until
    now was unknown to almost everyone in politics, raised and spent
    $250 million in 2012 to shape political and policy debate nationwide.

    The group, Freedom Partners, and its president, Marc Short, serve as
    an outlet for the ideas and funds of the mysterious Koch brothers,
    cutting checks as large as $63 million to groups promoting
    conservative causes, according to an IRS document to be filed shortly.

    The 38-page IRS filing amounts to the Rosetta Stone of the vast web
    of conservative groups --- some prominent, some obscure --- that
    spend time, money and resources to influence public debate,
    especially over Obamacare.

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55200&title=%E2%80%9CExclusive%3A%20The%20Koch%20Bros.%20Secret%20Bank%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law 
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>

    "House Ethics Panel Continues Inquiries of 3 Lawmakers"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55198>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:53 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55198>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

NYT 
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/us/politics/house-ethics-panel-continues-inquiries-of-3-lawmakers.html?ref=politics>: 
"The House Ethics Committee announced Wednesday that it would continue 
investigations into three lawmakers, including Representative Michele 
Bachmann 
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/michele_m_bachmann/index.html?inline=nyt-per>, 
but it stopped short of taking the most aggressive action it could."

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55198&title=%E2%80%9CHouse%20Ethics%20Panel%20Continues%20Inquiries%20of%203%20Lawmakers%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in ethics investigations <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=42>

    "Democrats Press Thompson to Forsake a Runoff"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55196>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:50 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55196>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

NYT 
<http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/12/nyregion/for-thompson-pressure-to-let-de-blasio-win.html?hp>: 
"With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Mr. de Blasio had won 40.3 
percent of the vote, just over the 40 percent required by law to avoid a 
runoff, but there were more than 16,000 paper ballots, some still 
arriving by mail, that could push Mr. de Blasio below that threshold 
when they are counted next week."

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55196&title=%E2%80%9CDemocrats%20Press%20Thompson%20to%20Forsake%20a%20Runoff%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in recounts <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=50>

    "Contracting Around Citizens United: Private Ordering, Political
    Dynamics, and Third-Party Campaign Spending"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55194>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:48 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55194>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Do read Ganesh Sitaraman's new draft 
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2322453>, which I 
found quite interesting:

    The Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United is widely considered
    a major roadblock for campaign finance reform, and particularly for
    limiting third-party spending in federal elections. In response to
    the decision, commentators, scholars, and activists have outlined a
    wide range of legislative and regulatory proposals to limit the
    influence of third-party spending, including constitutional
    amendments, public financing programs, and expanded disclosure
    rules. To date, however, they have not considered the possibility
    that third-party spending can be restrained by a self-enforcing
    private contract between the opposing campaigns. This Essay argues
    that private ordering, rather than public action, is an additional
    approach for limiting third-party campaign spending. It explains the
    design of a contract between opposing campaigns that is
    self-enforcing and restricts third-party spending; identifies the
    conditions under which a such a contract is likely to be offered and
    accepted; shows how political dynamics push third-parties and
    campaigns to adhere to the contract's spending restrictions; and
    discusses possible loopholes and challenges. While private ordering
    through a self-enforcing contract might seem like wishful thinking,
    precisely this kind of contract, "The People's Pledge," succeeded in
    keeping out third-party spending on TV, radio, and Internet
    advertising in the most-expensive Senate race in history, the 2012
    Warren-Brown race in Massachusetts. Since then, this kind of
    contract has been adopted in two other federal congressional races
    and debated and offered in a wide range of other races. In the
    context of political gridlock in Congress, the emergence of a
    private ordering option to achieve campaign finance reform goals is
    significant. This Essay provides the first analysis of the
    conditions under which private ordering, rather than public law
    reform, can limit third party spending in elections. It draws on
    examples, particularly that of the original People's Pledge, to
    illustrate the general parameters of these contracts, and it
    considers the implications of these contracts for election law and
    policy.

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55194&title=%E2%80%9CContracting%20Around%20Citizens%20United%3A%20Private%20Ordering%2C%20Political%20Dynamics%2C%20and%20Third-Party%20Campaign%20Spending%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

    "Fla. election chief wants support for voter purge"
    <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55192>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:45 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55192>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

AP 
<http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Fla-election-chief-wants-support-for-voter-purge-4806139.php>: 
"Florida's top election official, stung by criticism that the state 
previously relied on flawed data, wants to win support from skeptical 
election supervisors about a coming effort to remove non-U.S. citizens 
from the state's voter rolls."

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55192&title=%E2%80%9CFla.%20election%20chief%20wants%20support%20for%20voter%20purge%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, 
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>

    New CRS Report on IRS Line Between Issue Advocacy and Campaign
    Activity <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55190>

Posted on September 11, 2013 8:42 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55190>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Bloomberg BNA discusses it, 
<http://news.bna.com/mpdm/MPDMWB/split_display.adp?fedfid=36405401&vname=mpebulallissues&jd=a0e1q0f3c1&split=0> 
but does not link to it, and so far I can't find it.  Who has it?

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55190&title=New%20CRS%20Report%20on%20IRS%20Line%20Between%20Issue%20Advocacy%20and%20Campaign%20Activity&description=>
Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law 
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>

    "Has Prop 8 litigation permanently undermined California initiatives
    and the rule of law?" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55188>

Posted on September 11, 2013 5:50 pm 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55188>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Derek Muller blogs 
<http://excessofdemocracy.com/blog/2013/8/has-prop-8-litigation-permanently-undermined-california-initiatives-and-the-rule-of-law>.

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55188&title=%E2%80%9CHas%20Prop%208%20litigation%20permanently%20undermined%20California%20initiatives%20and%20the%20rule%20of%20law%3F%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in direct democracy <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=62>

    "Stop the Next Citizens United" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55186>

Posted on September 11, 2013 7:38 am 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=55186>by Rick Hasen 
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

DEMOs <http://www.demos.org/publication/stop-next-citizens-united> on 
McCutcheon.

Share 
<http://www.addtoany.com/share_save#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D55186&title=%E2%80%9CStop%20the%20Next%20Citizens%20United%E2%80%9D&description=>
Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>

-- 
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

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20130911/4c0e8b1d/attachment.html>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: share_save_171_16.png
Type: image/png
Size: 1504 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20130911/4c0e8b1d/attachment.png>