The IRS division responsible for flagging Tea Party groups has long been an agency afterthought, beset by mismanagement, financial constraints and an unwillingness to spell out just what it expects from social welfare nonprofits, former officials and experts say.
In January, Rep. Jeb Hensarling, R-Texas, ascended to the powerful chairmanship of the House Financial Services Committee. Six weeks later, campaign finance filings and interviews show, Hensarling was joined by representatives of the banking industry for a ski vacation fundraiser at a posh Park City, Utah, resort.
Along with eyebrow-raising support from Silicon Valley and Hollywood, Chris Christie today got a contribution from another perhaps-unexpected source: Mitt Romney.
A federal district court judge may set important precedent this week in considering whether Craig should have been allowed to use money from his campaign account to pay for his legal fees after that whole airport fiasco.
Government watchdogs are dubious. They say Menendez's financial situation adds fuel to questions about his motives and whether the free flights he accepted were a simple oversight.
Groups that did not disclose their donors played a larger role than ever before in trying to sway U.S. elections, and such spending played a greater role in the Montana Senate race than almost any other.
The most expensive election in the history of expensive elections passed a major milestone Thursday evening: the cost of the election was revealed to be more than $2 billion dollars.
The costliest presidential race in U.S. history has a new milestone: President Obama and his allies have cracked the billion-dollar barrier, according to separate analyses of federal campaign filings by Reuters and Politico.
The Government Integrity Fund, a previously unknown group, has poured money into ads bashing Ohio senator Sherrod Brown and praising his Republican opponent.
The conventional wisdom is that Citizens United treats political spending by corporations and labor unions equally. But the freedom that the Court’s Citizens United decision gives to corporations and unions alike, other cases take away from unions alone. The result? A legally constructed advantage for corporations over unions when it comes to politics.
President Obama donated $5,000 to his campaign he announced Tuesday, mostly, it seems, so that he could e-mail supporters about it.
The world of campaign finance can be confusing, so we've spent our afternoon making sense of breathless summer election reports to explain what, exactly, is happening with the Romney and Obama campaign bank accounts.
Sen. John McCain stroked the fantasies of campaign finance reformers with the impression that he would cross the aisle and vote with Democrats to help pass the DISCLOSE Act legislation, but yesterday the bill failed after a 51-44 party-line vote in favor. Behold the star-crossed romance...
By now, Karl Rove's juggernaut fundraising vehicle Crossroads GPS is famous for its influence and wealth. What's less visible is one of its principal financiers: casino mogul Steve Wynn, a billionaire ex-Democrat who voted for President Obama in 2008.
"While I do not belive I did anything illegal… I did an awful, awful lot that is wrong," Edwards said outside the courtroom after a jury acquitted him of one count and the judge declared a mistrial on the other five.
Donald Trump has attached himself to Mitt Romney's hip in the last 24 hours, providing the nominee with (depending on who you ask) a major headache or a secret weapon. But has he given him anything he can actually use?
One of the most annoying parts of running for president for guys like Mitt Romney and Barack Obama -- men who are not natural back-slappers like Bill Clinton -- is that they have to pretend to be interested in all the terrible ideas offered by the rich guys who donate tons of money to their campaigns.
We wouldn't be so disappointed that John Edwards' defense team had rested its case without him or his mistress being called to testify if that possibility hadn't been teased so hard in the news, but as it is, this is such a letdown.
Florida Senator and current VP nomination contender Marco Rubio was busted for accepting illegal donations for his Senate campaign in 2010.
Dispatches from John Edwards' trial over campaign finance law violations continue to come out. Today's episode takes an interesting romantic turn.
The trial of disgraced former Senator John Edwards is well underway, and there are nuggets both titillating and shameful coming forward. Are we supposed to feel sorry for him, after everything we've been through?
Rick Santorum's campaign for the presidency is over but instead of throwing in the towel with a decisive phrase like "I'm finished," he announced that "we'll suspend our campaign effective today."
She may not have risen to Bernie Madoff's level, but with Kinde Durkee's guilty plea Friday she's grabbed the title of California's biggest campaign finance fraudster.
Thanks to Citizens United and other recent court decisions, individuals, corporations and unions can make unlimited donations to so-called super PACs that support a candidate. The money is flowing in. So, exactly who is donating, and what do they want?
Super PACs draw a lot of attention when they're smearing opponents with vicious advertisements but what happens when the dream dies and the committee's candidate drops out?
It may not stack up to Karl Rove's American Crossroads but Stephen Colbert's super PAC Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow puts a whole host of serious super PACs to shame when it comes to fundraising.
The latest plot twist in Stephen Colbert's continuing civics lesson on campaign finance came last night: he announced that he would not run for president and demanded Jon Stewart give him back his but The Daily Show host refused. We asked a lawyer what's going on.
Stephen Colbert's faux presidential run has created an unlikely celebrity out of Trevor Potter—the meticulous yet amiable election lawyer guiding Colbert audiences through the thorny world of campaign super PACs.
If Stephen Colbert's announcement to explore a presidential run was one part ratings ploy, it was at least two parts civics lesson.
“I am proud to announce that I am forming an exploratory committee to lay the groundwork for my possible candidacy for president of the United States of America of South Carolina,” Colbert said.
Congratulations to Mitt Romney on his narrow win in Tuesday's Iowa caucuses. But don't give the former Massachusetts governor all the credit; after all, he couldn't have done it without a supporting cast of collapse-prone opponents, and one very valuable ally.
A New York Times report sparks a debate about the re-election campaign's strength
The campaign treasurer accused of embezzling millions didn't run into problems with the feds
Anonymous person behind $1 million campaign donation revealed!
Clean government advocates are dreaded the FEC ruling. But it turned out okay
The Comedy Central host can raise unlimited funds to influence the 2012 elections
The Comedy Central host wants to use his show to promote his own PAC
This stunt could have a major political impact (if it's taken seriously)
Without a strong 2012 contender, where's all the money to go?
After decrying such Republican outside campaign efforts, Democrats are following suit
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