[EL] missing IRS emails

Sun Jun 15 17:32:19 PDT 2014

A much more complete list is offered by Paul Caron at his TaxProfBlog,
which has compiled daily coverage and commentary on this scandal since it
began.  Here’s his latest:

http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2014/06/strong-1.html

------
Jonathan H. Adler
Johan Verheij Memorial Professor of Law
Director, Center for Business Law & Regulation
Case Western Reserve University School of Law
11075 East Boulevard
Cleveland, OH 44106
ph) 216-368-2535
fax) 216-368-2086
cell) 202-255-3012
jha5 at case.edu
SSRN: http://ssrn.com/author=183995

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/author/adlerj/

*From:* Rick Hasen [mailto:rhasen at law.uci.edu]
*Sent:* Sunday, June 15, 2014 7:48 PM
*To:* Jonathan Adler
*Cc:* law-election at UCI.edu
*Subject:* Re: missing IRS emails

Here's Nick Rosenkranz offering links to more skepticism of the IRS's
claims:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2014/06/15/the-irs-claims-that-lois-lerners-e-mails-were-wiped-out-by-a-computer-crash/

On 6/15/14, 4:12 PM, Jonathan Adler wrote:

If the IRS had made a similar claim - that a server failure resulted in the
loss of millions of emails across multiple accounts - it would be far more
credible than what I understand they are actually claiming here: That one
employee's emails are missing due to a single hard drive failure and the
lack of any email server backup at all.  There may be an innocent
explanation, but it would suggest IT at the IRS is woefully outdated.

On Jun 15, 2014 7:00 PM, "Rick Hasen" <rhasen at law.uci.edu> wrote:

In response to this controversy, Tom Edsall tweeted
<https://twitter.com/Edsall/status/477964976561606656>out a link to this
from 2007:

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/04/13/white.house.email/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

(CNN) -- Millions of White House e-mails may be missing, White House
spokeswoman Dana Perino acknowledged Friday.

"I wouldn't rule out that there were a potential 5 million e-mails lost,"
Perino told reporters.

The administration was already facing sharp questions about whether top
presidential advisers including Karl Rove improperly used Republican
National Committee e-mail that the White House said later disappeared.....

On 6/15/14, 2:55 PM, Jonathan Adler wrote:

My jaw dropped over the latest IRS-Lerner story.  Either the IRS lacks a
modern email server and has woefully outdated backup protocols, or the IRS
account is not remotely credible.

On Jun 15, 2014 12:30 AM, "Rick Hasen" <rhasen at law.uci.edu> wrote:
“A Cantor Effect for Businesses and the G.O.P.”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62374>

Posted on June 14, 2014 9:15 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62374> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

NYT
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/15/business/for-businesses-and-the-gop-a-cantor-effect.html?ref=politics>
:

Mr. Cantor’s loss is much more than just symbolism. He has been one of Wall
Street’s most reliable benefactors in Congress. And Mr. Brat used that fact
to deride the majority leader as someone who had rigged the financial
system. In one recent speech <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tg5zRKcWj68>,
he accused lawmakers like Mr. Cantor of favoring “special tax credits to
billionaires instead of taking care of us, the normal folks.”

The majority leader stopped a provision — reviled by the industry — in the
Stock Act of 2012 that would have required hedge funds to disclose more
about how they gather market-sensitive intelligence. He battled with
conservative lawmakers to extend the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, a top
priority of the insurance industry, which has helped it recover from losses
after the Sept. 11 attacks. He helped scuttle White House proposals to
collect more taxes from private equity
<http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/p/private_equity/index.html?inline=nyt-classifier>
firms. His wife, Diana, has had a career in banking, working for Goldman
Sachs and New York Private Bank & Trust.

No industry was more generous to Mr. Cantor’s campaign than financial
services. The three largest contributors in this election cycle, in which
he collected $5.4 million, were Goldman Sachs, the Blackstone Group and
Scoggin Capital Management.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, campaigns
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
“The Koch Cycle of Endless Cash” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62372>

Posted on June 14, 2014 9:04 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62372> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

NYT editorial.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/14/opinion/the-koch-cycle-of-endless-cash.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“IRS lost emails by official in tea party probe”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62370>

Posted on June 14, 2014 9:01 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62370> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

AP
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/irs-lost-emails-by-official-in-tea-party-probe/2014/06/13/457c3b4c-f338-11e3-8d66-029598e98add_story.html?hpid=z3>
:

The Internal Revenue Service said Friday it has lost a trove of emails to
and from a central figure in the agency’s tea party controversy, sparking
outrage from congressional investigators who have been probing the agency
for more than a year.

The IRS told Congress Friday it cannot locate many of Lois Lerner’s emails
prior to 2011 because her computer crashed during the summer of that year.

Ron Fornier: “
<http://www.nationaljournal.com/white-house/did-the-irs-really-lose-lois-lerner-s-emails-let-a-special-prosecutor-find-them-20140613>Did
The IRS Really Lose Lois Lerner’s Emails? Let a Special Prosecutor Find
Them”

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>
“How to Take Out a Supreme Court Justice; When politicians target elected
judges with big money, the justice system loses.”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62367>

Posted on June 13, 2014 8:06 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62367> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Dahlia Lithwick writes
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/jurisprudence/2014/06/tennessee_supreme_court_justices_gary_wade_cornelia_clark_and_sharon_lee.html>
for *Slate.*

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Posted in judicial elections <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=19>
“Asymmetrical Polarization Undermined? Thoughts on the New Pew Research
Center’s Report on Political Polarization”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62365>

Posted on June 13, 2014 3:40 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62365> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Tom Mann blogs
<http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/fixgov/posts/2014/06/13-asymmetrical-polarization-undermined-pew-research-mann>at
Brookings’ FixGov blog.

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Posted in political parties <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>, political
polarization <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=68>
Teachout, Wu Mount All-Law Professor-Ticket for NY Governor Against Cuomo
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62363>

Posted on June 13, 2014 1:26 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62363> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Election law prof Zephyr Teachout back in governor’s race,
<http://www.buzzfeed.com/jacobfischler/zephyr-teachout-challenges-andrew-cuomo>
joined by IP Prof Tim Wu as Lt. Governor’s candidate.

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Posted in campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
“Cuomo Has Raised Millions Through Loophole He Pledged to Close”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62360>

Posted on June 13, 2014 12:56 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62360> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

ProPublica
<http://www.propublica.org/article/cuomo-has-raised-millions-through-loophole-he-pledged-to-close>
:

When he ran for office four years ago, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo
pledged to close a loophole in the state’s campaign finance regulations
allowing corporations and individuals to pour unlimited amounts of money
into politics.

Instead, he’s become the loophole’s biggest beneficiary.

 New York State forbids corporations from giving more than $5,000 a year to
candidates and political committees. But limited liability
companies—businesses that share attributes of corporations and
partnerships—are allowed to give up to $60,800 to a statewide candidate per
election cycle and up to $150,000 a year to candidates and committees
overall. What’s more, corporations and individuals can set up an unlimited
number of LLCs through which to donate, making the caps effectively
meaningless.

Cuomo took contributions from LLCs while running for governor in 2010, but
said at the time that he was only accepting them
<http://www.wnyc.org/story/92116-llcs-and-llc-loophole/> so that he could
get elected and change the law. He has twice proposed legislation that
would eliminate the LLC exception, most recently in his budget proposal
<http://www.propublica.org/documents/item/1194974-cuomos-executive-budget-2014.html#document/p25/a162605>
in January, but it hasn’t been enacted. He told reporters Wednesday
<http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/albany/2014/06/8547025/cuomo-not-overly-optimistic-about-end-legislative-session>
that there was little chance any campaign finance reforms would pass before
the legislative session ends next week.

Cuomo has accepted more than $6.2 million from LLCs in the three and a half
years since he took office, according to a ProPublica analysis of state
campaign finance filings. That’s more than double the amount his two
predecessors, Eliot Spitzer and David Paterson, took in during their
combined four years in office. The contributions make up a sizeable chunk
of the $33 million Cuomo has reported raising
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/16/nyregion/cuomo-has-raised-over-33-million-for-re-election-bid.html?_r=0>
for his re-election campaign. (The data reflects contributions reported
through mid-January, when candidates last filed disclosure reports.)

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“The Role of Cities in National Popular Vote Elections”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62358>

Posted on June 13, 2014 12:54 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62358> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

FairVote
<http://www.fairvote.org/research-and-analysis/ra-reports/the-role-of-cities-in-national-popular-vote-elections/>
:

This report challenges the argument that a national popular vote for
president would advantage Democratic or urban voters in three ways. First,
we demonstrate that urban areas, when properly defined as metropolitan
statistical areas (MSAs), lean only modestly toward the Democratic Party.
Using data from the 2004 presidential election (the closest of the last
three presidential elections, in which Republican nominee George W. Bush
won with 51.2% of the two-party popular vote), we show that: Democratic and
Republican presidential nominees are almost evenly supported in
metropolitan areas: Bush won a majority of MSAs; and the number of votes
cast in the 100 largest cities proper and cast by voters living outside
MSAs were comparable.

Second, we address the premise of a potential Democratic advantage in
national popular vote elections due to the possibility of them focusing
resources on large cities. Using data from the 2008 election (in which
Democratic nominee Barack Obama won with 53.7% of the two-party popular
vote), we show that even if the candidates were to focus their attention
heavily on the nation’s largest urban areas (the 21 MSA with at least 2.5
million voters), thereby increasing their vote shares there, they would
still need to earn almost as many votes in the rest of the nation in order
to maintain their original national popular vote share. Simply put, when
every vote is equal in a close election, candidates cannot afford to ignore
large portions of eligible voters.

Third, we review evidence from presidential and gubernatorial elections to
demonstrate how campaign strategy might work under a national popular vote
system. Today, when campaigning to win the statewide popular vote in swing
states, presidential candidates campaign in urban, suburban, and rural
areas in proportion to those areas’ share of the swing state’s vote. This
strategy is similar to those in gubernatorial elections, which Republicans
are able to win in almost every state. Republican candidates, like
Democrats, are able to earn votes across any state, demonstrating that in
winning statewide popular vote elections, successful candidates need not,
and do not, focus only on urban areas.

Our analysis confirms that the national popular vote has no inherent
partisan bias.  With charges of partisan bias so effectively dismissed, it
is time for both Democrats and Republican to come together in support of a
reform that would make every vote equal.

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Posted in electoral college <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=44>
Jessica A. Levinson Reviews ‘On Democracy’s Doorstep : The Inside Story of
How the Supreme Court Brought ‘One Person, One Vote’ to the United States”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62356>

Posted on June 13, 2014 11:21 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62356> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Review
<https://lareviewofbooks.org/review/supreme-court-saved-right-vote/#.U5s-ocJpNtw.twitter>
.

I had not heard of this book
<http://www.amazon.com/dp/0809074230/?tag=losangrevofbo-20> by J. Douglas
Smith but the blurbs make it sound fantastic.

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Posted in redistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>, Supreme Court
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
“INGRAHAM: National Tea Party Groups Didn’t Help Brat (VIDEO)”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62350>

Posted on June 13, 2014 10:45 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62350> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Daily Caller.
<http://dailycaller.com/2014/06/11/ingraham-national-tea-party-groups-didnt-help-brat-video/>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, campaigns
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>
“J.H. Snider and Beverly Clay: ‘Dark money’ drives R.I. constitutional
convention votes “ <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62348>

Posted on June 13, 2014 10:01 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62348> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Providence Journal oped.
<http://www.providencejournal.com/opinion/commentary/20140613-j.h.-snider-and-beverly-clay-dark-money-drives-r.i.-constitutional-convention-votes.ece>

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“A closer look at Scott Guthrie, aide to Josh Mandel and behind-the-scenes
figure in Ben Suarez case” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62346>

Posted on June 13, 2014 9:37 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62346> by Rick
Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>

Fascinating
<http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2014/06/a_closer_look_at_scott_guthrie.html#incart_river>
.

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, chicanery
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>
Election Law @ Moritz Report, “The New Soft Money,” Coming This Wed., June
18 <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62329>

Posted on June 13, 2014 9:08 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=62329> by Dan
Tokaji <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=5>

I’m pleased to announce the release of a report on independent spending,
co-authored by Renata Strause and me, on *Wednesday, June 18*.  The report,
entitled *The New Soft Money: Outside Spending in Congressional* *Elections*,
will be released at the National Press Club
<http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/registrations/event/the-new-soft-money/> at 9:00
am.  The report includes interviews with former Members of Congress, such
as Senators George Allen, Kent Conrad, and Ben Nelson, and Representatives
Mark Critz, Tim Holden, Steve LaTourette, and Joe Walsh, as well as recent
congressional candidates, campaign staff, political operatives, legislative
staff, and representatives of outside groups.

At *4:30* *pm* that day, June 18, a panel discussion
<http://electionlawblog.org/wp-content/uploads/PLSI-OSU-IE-6-18-14-Panel-Invite-Final.pdf>
on the report will take place at George Washington University Law School
(Lisner Hall 201, 2023 G St NW), hosted by the Political Law Studies
Initiative.  The panel will feature Don McGahn, Larry Noble, Brad Smith,
Brian Svoboda, as well as Renata and me, and will be moderated by Bill
McGinley.  A reception will follow the panel.  All those in the Washington
DC area are welcome and invited to attend.  Hope to see you there!

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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, legislation
and legislatures <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=27>, lobbying
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=28>

-- 

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

_______________________________________________
Law-election mailing list
Law-election at department-lists.uci.edu
http://department-lists.uci.edu/mailman/listinfo/law-election

-- 

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

-- 

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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