[EL] ELB News and Commentary 2/12/16
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Thu Feb 11 21:32:17 PST 2016
“Dear Bernie Sanders: Don’t follow in Obama’s footsteps on campaign
finance reform” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79871>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 9:23 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79871>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Larry Lessig
<https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/mr-sanders-dont-follow-in-barack-obamas-footsteps-on-campaign-finance-reform/2016/02/11/50758490-cdd4-11e5-88cd-753e80cd29ad_story.html>WaPo
oped:
But on the same day that Sanders declared that campaign finance
reform must come first, his campaign released a statement completely
negating the significance of that promise. Responding to a
crowdsourced question on change.org’s <https://www.change.org/>new
politics platform,Sanders again promised
<https://www.changepolitics.org/question/8228fa47-1a80-4461-8150-e0408e2102cb/response/361e3a03-b104-4ae1-a764-1e3f3f07159a>to
“commit to making reforms that change the way campaigns are funded a
primary objective” of his administration. But when he listed what he
would actually do in his “first 100 days in office,” his list
included three minor changes related to transparency in political
spending. As to the only change that could make his platform
credible — revamping the way congressional elections are funded by
adopting a system of small-dollar, citizen-funded campaigns, such as
the one Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) has proposed — Sanders indicated
this was something to “move toward” “over the long term.”
“Over the long term”? What exactly does Sanders expect to accomplish
in the short term, before this change is enacted? AsSen. Elizabeth
Warren (D-Mass.)
said<http://www.warren.senate.gov/files/documents/2016-1-21_Warren_Floor_Speech_on_Money_in_Politics.pdf>in
a speech on the floor of the Senate on the anniversary of the
Supreme Court’s/Citizens United/decision, this is not a fight for
the long term. This is the fight to be having right now. The only
way real change will happen in the United States is if Congress is
set free from its corrupting dependence on interested money. Yet,
bizarrely, Sanders doesn’t commit to promoting this essential change
in Congress as a priority of his administration.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79871&title=%26%238220%3BDear%20Bernie%20Sanders%3A%20Don%E2%80%99t%20follow%20in%20Obama%E2%80%99s%20footsteps%20on%20campaign%20finance%20reform%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“From Selma to Ferguson: The Voting Rights Act as a Blueprint for
Police Reform” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79868>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 9:17 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79868>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Jason Mazzone and Stephen Rushin have postedthis draft
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2731347>on SSRN.
Here is the abstract:
The Voting Rights Act of 1965 revolutionized access to the voting
booth. Rather than responding to claims of voter suppression through
litigation against individual states or counties, the Voting Rights
Act introduced a coverage formula that preemptively regulated a
large number of localities across the country. In doing so, the
Voting Rights Act replaced reactive, piecemeal litigation with a
proactive structure of continual federal oversight. As the most
successful civil rights law in the nation’s history, the Voting
Rights Act provides a blueprint for responding to one of the most
pressing civil rights problems the country faces today: police
misconduct. As with voter suppression in the mid-twentieth century,
abusive police conduct against minority citizens is a national
problem perpetrated by thousands of localities. Federal efforts to
cure the problem through litigation against individual police
departments have failed to produce widespread reform. This Article
applies the lessons of the Voting Rights Act in proposing the use of
a coverage formula to identify and regulate local police departments
engaged in a pattern of unconstitutional misconduct. While this
proposal would significantly enhance federal power over police
departments, such a change is both necessary to curb police
misconduct and constitutionally permissible.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79868&title=%26%238220%3BFrom%20Selma%20to%20Ferguson%3A%20The%20Voting%20Rights%20Act%20as%20a%20Blueprint%20for%20Police%20Reform%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted inVoting Rights Act <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=15>
Podcast on Plutocrats United, with Commentary by Erwin Chemerinsky
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79866>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 9:14 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79866>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
They’ve turned my recent at UCILaw talk
<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9US-LdVgQc>on mybook
<http://www.amazon.com/Plutocrats-United-Campaign-Distortion-Elections/dp/0300212453/>,
with commentary by Dean Chemerinsky, into a podcast you can listen
tohere <http://www.law.uci.edu/podcast/episode12.html>.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79866&title=Podcast%20on%20Plutocrats%20United%2C%20with%20Commentary%20by%20Erwin%20Chemerinsky&description=>
Posted incampaign finance
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,Plutocrats United
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=104>
“Groundbreaking Maryland Legislation Seeks to End Congressional
Gerrymandering with Fair Representation”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79864>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 9:06 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79864>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
FairVote
<http://www.fairvote.org/groundbreaking_maryland_legislation_seeks_to_end_congressional_gerrymandering_with_fair_representation>:
Sen. Raskin, a Democrat in a Democratically-controlled legislature,
has long suggested
<http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2011-11-07/news/bs-ed-voting-districts-20111107_1_single-member-districts-gerrymandering-fair-voting> the
best way to hold congressional elections is with fair representation
voting. His new legislation presents a creative way to end the
national standoff. He has proposed entering in an interstate compact
(a contract among states, for example the Port Authority of New York
and New Jersey or the National Popular Vote plan
<http://www.nationalpopularvote.com/> for president) that would
first involve negotiation with the state of Virginia (hence the name
“Potomac Compact”).
Senator Raskin’s proposed compact would end having ugly districts,
but more importantly end ugly representation and lack of
competition: it allows Maryland, Virginia and other states to escape
the single-winner district gerrymandering system altogether. It
proposes that Maryland and any other participating states — starting
with negotiations with Virginia — form independent redistricting
commissions that are empowered to create congressional districts in
which multiple candidates are elected, rather than a single
candidate per district, as is currently the case. By allowing more
than one voice to represent a district, the new plan would break up
the monopoly that one party or another has on representation in an
area. It still would need congressional consent to go into place,
but it would be Congress consenting to plans agreed to by the
participating states.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79864&title=%26%238220%3BGroundbreaking%20Maryland%20Legislation%20Seeks%20to%20End%20Congressional%20Gerrymandering%20with%20Fair%20Representation%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted inredistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6>
“FEC OKs DePauw stipend for Clinton intern”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79862>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 9:00 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79862>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
IndyStar
<http://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/02/11/fec-oks-depauw-stipend-clinton-intern/80245252/>:
An Indiana college student convinced an often-deadlocked Federal
Election Commission on Thursday that allowing DePauw University to
pay her a stipend for interning on Hillary Clinton’s presidential
campaign is not an illegal campaign contribution.
One Democrat joined the three Republican members of the commission
in agreeing that the $3,000 grant DePauw offered to Victoria
Houghtalen last year was for a “bona fide” educational experience
and not direct compensation for campaign work.
The two commissioners who disagreed argued that the decision will
allow unidentified donors to fund college internship programs to
benefit certain campaigns.
“It’s quite clear that corporate contributions are not appropriate,”
said Commissioner Ann Ravel, a Democrat. “I am too concerned about
the potential ramifications about this, given the clear law that we
have.”
Democratic CommissionerEllen
Weintraub<https://twitter.com/EllenLWeintraub/status/697959662205988864>on
Twitter: “Big#*FEC* <https://twitter.com/hashtag/FEC?src=hash>decision
today allows college internship stipends for campaign
volunteers:http://saos.fec.gov/aodocs/2015-14.pdf…
<https://t.co/vwXlpYq9dR>My
take:https://www.dropbox.com/s/yf6h85t8qc3rffi/FEC-ELW-Concurring-statement-AO-2015-14.pdf?dl=0…
<https://t.co/oSl5BX8k99>”
Trying to think of the last significant Weintraub-Ravel split…
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79862&title=%26%238220%3BFEC%20OKs%20DePauw%20stipend%20for%20Clinton%20intern%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,federal
election commission <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=24>
“NC DMV says it messed up by rejecting 86-year-old woman seeking
voter ID” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79860>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 2:56 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79860>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Great
<http://www.kansas.com/news/nation-world/national/article59774816.html>,
but let’s not pretend they will do this for others who face similar
hurdles but less publicity.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79860&title=%26%238220%3BNC%20DMV%20says%20it%20messed%20up%20by%20rejecting%2086-year-old%20woman%20seeking%20voter%20ID%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted inelection administration
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,The Voting Wars
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>
Top Recent Downloads in Election Law on SSRN
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79858>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 2:46 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79858>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Here
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/topten/topTenResults.cfm?groupingId=991929&netorjrnl=jrnl>:
*RECENT TOP PAPERS*for all papers first announced in the last 60
days<http://papers.ssrn.com/publicRss/rssManagerInc.cfm?journalId=991929>
/13 Dec 2015 through 11 Feb 2016/
Rank Downloads Paper Title
1 1,100 *The Original Meaning of ‘Natural Born’*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2712485>
Michael D. Ramsey
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=224466>
University of San Diego School of Law
/Date posted to database: /9 Jan 2016
/Last Revised: /9 Jan 2016
2 90 *Clearing the Political Thicket: Why Political Gerrymandering for
Partisan Advantage is Unconstitutional*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2698183>
Gary Michael Parsons
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2449663>
Independent
/Date posted to database: /4 Dec 2015
/Last Revised: /8 Jan 2016
3 65 *Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, Joe Biden, and a Disrupted
Electoral College: High Unfavorable Ratings, Multi-Candidate General
Election Ballots, and Pursuing the ‘Art of the Deal’ with Free-Agent
Electors in December 2016*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2699244>
Victor Williams
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2428486>
Catholic University of America (CUA) – Columbus School of Law
/Date posted to database: /4 Dec 2015
/Last Revised: /9 Dec 2015
4 63 *Speech-Facilitating Conduct*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2725493>
Wesley J. Campbell
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1797821>
Stanford Law School
/Date posted to database: /1 Feb 2016
/Last Revised: /1 Feb 2016
5 53 *The Constitutionality of State Law Triggering Political
Committee(-Like) Burdens and the Current Circuit Splits*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2713496>
Randy Elf <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2497188>
Independent
/Date posted to database: /11 Jan 2016
/Last Revised: /9 Feb 2016
6 45 *The Amendment Diversion: How Clinton, the Democrats, and Even
Sanders Distract Attention from Effective Strategies for Too Much Money
in Politics by Promoting Futile Remedies — Book I: Hillary Clinton and
the Dark Money Disclosure ‘Pillar’*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2722336>
Rob Hager <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2503056>
MOP
/Date posted to database: /1 Feb 2016
/Last Revised: /4 Feb 2016
7 44 *A New Threat to the Viability of Contribution Limits*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2718975>
Brent Ferguson
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1609799>
New York University (NYU) – Brennan Center for Justice
/Date posted to database: /20 Jan 2016
/Last Revised: /20 Jan 2016
8 43 *Assessing the Potential Impact of Evenwel v. Abbott*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2699850>
Carl Eoin Klarner
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2486722>
Klarnerpolitics
/Date posted to database: /7 Dec 2015
/Last Revised: /7 Dec 2015
9 40 *The New Federal Analogy: Evenwel v. Abbott and the History of
Congressional Apportionment*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2701538>
Thomas Berry
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=2191270>
Stanford University, School of Law, Students
/Date posted to database: /13 Dec 2015
/Last Revised: /15 Dec 2015
10 29 *Redistricting and Polarization*
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/Papers.cfm?abstract_id=2710831>
Micah Altman
<http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=836555>andMichael
P. McDonald <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=811078>
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Libraries and University of
Florida
/Date posted to database: /5 Jan 2016
/Last Revised: /5 Jan 2016
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79858&title=Top%20Recent%20Downloads%20in%20Election%20Law%20on%20SSRN&description=>
Posted inUncategorized <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=1>
Steve Simpson and I Talked Campaign Finance, Plutocrats United at
Southwestern Law Event <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79855>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 2:26 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79855>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Steve was one of the main litigators in the Speechnow and Arizona public
financing cases.
You can watch the videohere
<http://livestream.com/SouthwesternLawSchool/campaignfinance>.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79855&title=Steve%20Simpson%20and%20I%20Talked%20Campaign%20Finance%2C%20Plutocrats%20United%20at%20Southwestern%20Law%20Event&description=>
Posted incampaign finance
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,Plutocrats United
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=104>,Supreme Court
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=29>
“How Companies Can Avoid Campaign Finance and Pay-to-Play Pitfalls”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79853>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 2:17 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79853>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Jason Abel writes
<http://www.corpcounsel.com/id=1202749494435/How-Companies-Can-Avoid-Campaign-Finance-and-PaytoPlay-Pitfalls?mcode=1202614998157&curindex=0&curpage=ALL&slreturn=20160111171553>for
Corporate Counsel.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79853&title=%26%238220%3BHow%20Companies%20Can%20Avoid%20Campaign%20Finance%20and%20Pay-to-Play%20Pitfalls%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>
“Common Cause, Georgia NAACP File Suit Challenging Voter Purges”
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79851>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 2:09 pm
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79851>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
See this press release.
<http://www.commoncause.org/press/press-releases/common-cause-georgia-naacp-sue-over-voter-purges.html>
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79851&title=%26%238220%3BCommon%20Cause%2C%20Georgia%20NAACP%20File%20Suit%20Challenging%20Voter%20Purges%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted inelection administration
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,NVRA (motor voter)
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=33>
“Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS manages to make it even harder to find
the dark money in U.S. politics” <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79848>
Posted onFebruary 11, 2016 11:57 am
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=79848>byRick Hasen
<http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
I have writtenthis oped
<http://www.latimes.com/opinion/op-ed/la-oe-hasen-green-light-for-more-dark-money-20160212-story.html>for
the LA Times. It begins:
If you know nothing else about a candidate except that he or she is
backed by the Koch brothers or George Soros, it’s often enough to
help you make an informed decision about how you want to vote.
Unfortunately, this week it became clear that finding out which
plutocrats, corporations and interest groups are bankrolling
American elections is only going to get harder.
The blog at the indispensable website OpenSecrets.org, of the Center
for Responsive Politics, reported Tuesday that theIRS
<http://www.latimes.com/topic/business/internal-revenue-service-ORGOV000010-topic.html>had
quietly granted 501(c)(4) nonprofit status to Karl Rove’s political
group Crossroads GPS. That implicitly gives a green light to “social
welfare groups” to spend enormous sums on political ads, all without
disclosing where these groups get their money.
It’s a decision that will hurt our democracy. And it might never
have happened if the IRS hadn’t hamhandedly singled outtea party
<http://www.latimes.com/topic/politics-government/tea-party-movement-ORCIG000068-topic.html>groups
for investigation a few years earlier.
Share
<https://www.addtoany.com/share#url=http%3A%2F%2Felectionlawblog.org%2F%3Fp%3D79848&title=%26%238220%3BKarl%20Rove%26%238217%3Bs%20Crossroads%20GPS%20manages%20to%20make%20it%20even%20harder%20to%20find%20the%20dark%20money%20in%20U.S.%20politics%26%238221%3B&description=>
Posted incampaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22>
--
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/20160211/6350d7e0/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/20160211/6350d7e0/attachment.png>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: rss_small.png
Type: image/png
Size: 4442 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://webshare.law.ucla.edu/Listservs/law-election/attachments/20160211/6350d7e0/attachment-0001.png>
View list directory