Where The PAC Money Is (Graphic)

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Who Are The GOP Super PAC Donors

Super PAC Donors Revealed: Who Are The Power Players In The GOP Primary? -- Washington Post

Harold C. Simmons, a billionaire corporate raider from Texas, pulled out his checkbook on Jan. 13 and gave $100,000 to a super PAC backing Mitt Romney, then donated $5 million more to another PAC stacked with Romney confidants.

But 11 days later, Simmons doled out $500,000 to a super PAC devoted to Newt Gingrich, who had just trounced Romney in the Republican presidential primary in South Carolina.

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Another Vacation For Michelle Obama

Michelle's Ski Trip Marks 16 Obama Vacations -- Washington Examiner

First lady Michelle Obama’s weekend jaunt to Aspen, Colorado for a President’s Day ski holiday with her daughters Sasha and Malia makes the 16th time members of the first family have gone on extended vacations during their three years in office.

Their stay at the home of a major Chicago fundraiser for President Obama makes the fifth time the first lady and her daughters have taken a break from Washington on their own. Only once has Obama had a long weekend out of town and alone, celebrating his 49th birthday in Chicago in August 2010.

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My Comment: 16 vacations in 3 years .... wow .... I definitely took the wrong course in life.

Maxine Waters Case In Limbo With Mass Recusals

Ethics Panel Members Recused In Maxine Waters Case -- Politico

Six members of the House Ethics Committee — including all five Republicans on the secretive panel — have recused themselves from the long-running case involving Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.), an unprecedented move that raises new questions on whether the Waters case can be finished.

Reps. Jo Bonner (R-Ala.), chairman of the Ethics Committee, and Rep. Michael Conaway (Texas), who was the lead Republican on the special subcommittee that investigated Waters, are among the recusals, Bonner said in a letter released on Friday.

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My Comment: The Democrats are closing ranks around Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters (Calif.).

Interference Seen In Philadelphia Newspapers

Protesters outside the newspapers' building on Tuesday. Jessica Kourkounis for The New York Times

Interference Seen in Philadelphia Papers -- New York Times

Last week, Gregory J. Osberg, chief executive and publisher of the Philadelphia Media Network, which publishes The Inquirer, The Daily News and Philly.com, summoned the news organization’s three most senior editors to his office.

Over three hours, he told them he would be overseeing all articles related to the newspapers’ impending sale. If any articles ran without his approval, the editors would be fired, according to several editors and reporters briefed on the meeting who did not want to be identified criticizing the company’s leadership.

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My Comment: Bias and manipulation in the news media .... I am shocked I tell you .... SHOCKED!!!!

Why Are Federal Funds Flowing To Clean-Energy Firms With White House Ties?

Image from the RNC

Federal Funds Flow To Clean-Energy Firms With Obama Administration Ties -- Washington Post

Sanjay Wagle was a venture capitalist and Barack Obama fundraiser in 2008, rallying support through a group he headed known as Clean Tech for Obama.

Shortly after Obama’s election, he left his California firm to join the Energy Department, just as the administration embarked on a massive program to stimulate the economy with federal investments in clean-technology firms.

Following an enduring Washington tradition, Wagle shifted from the private sector, where his firm hoped to profit from federal investments, to an insider’s seat in the administration’s $80 billion clean-energy investment program.

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My Comment: Wow .... we are talking about an $80 billion clean-energy investment program .... that's big money.

2 Million Dead People Listed On US Electoral Rolls

Nearly 2 Million Dead People Listed On US Electoral Rolls -- The Telegraph

More than 1.8 million dead Americans remain listed as active voters, according to a study released Tuesday which described the US voter registration system as "plagued with errors and inefficiencies."

The research conducted by the non-partisan Pew Centre on the States also revealed that one in every eight voter records contains inaccuracies, and at least 51 million eligible voters are not registered to take part in elections.

The study comes as the United States prepares for presidential and congressional elections in November.

"Voter registration is the gateway to participating in our democracy, but these antiquated, paper-based systems are plagued with errors and inefficiencies," said David Becker, director of Election Initiatives at Pew.

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My Comment: Dead people voting in elections is as old as America itself.

Is The IRS Silencing White House Critics?

Is IRS Targeting Obama's Enemies? -- Raven Clabough, New American

In 2010, American Thinker posted an interesting defense of a flat tax, noting that it would help preserve privacy and freedom of speech by eliminating the need for the federal government to know virtually every aspect of a taxpayer’s financial assets. Two years later, some people are seeing truth in the magazine's assessment that the administration may be using the Internal Revenue Service to silence its opposition.

Ohio Liberty Council, for instance, says they are being made to jump through hoops by the IRS, which has demanded certain documents in order for the group's process of acquiring non-profit status to move forward. OLC President Tom Zawistowski posted a letter on the organization's website detailing the difficulties:

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My Comment: The IRS requirements seem to be excessive .... but the IRS is the IRS ..... we must always assume the worse.

Clean-Energy Firms With Obama Administration Ties Are Raking In The Money

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Federal Funds Flow To Clean-Energy Firms With Obama Administration Ties -- Washington Post

Sanjay Wagle was a venture capitalist and Barack Obama fundraiser in 2008, rallying support through a group he headed known as Clean Tech for Obama.

Shortly after Obama’s election, he left his California firm to join the Energy Department, just as the administration embarked on a massive program to stimulate the economy with federal investments in clean-technology firms.

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My Comment: It's nice when you have friends in high places, especially friends that you help to elect.

Chicago Is Nation’s Corruption Capital

It’s Official: Chicago Is Nation’s Corruption Capital -- Chicago Sun Times

A University of Illinois study has found what many probably already suspected: Chicago is the corruption capital of the nation.

The study — published Wednesday as the details of former Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s Colorado prison assignment emerged — showed that the federal court district that includes Chicago has had 1,531 public corruption convictions since 1976, more than any other district in the nation.

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My Comment: Not an honor that I would like to boast about.

Voter Rolls Are Rife With Inaccuracies

Decentralized and paper-based voter registration is prone to error, according to a new report. Eric Thayer for The New York Times

Voter Rolls Are Rife With Inaccuracies, Report Finds -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — The nation’s voter registration rolls are in disarray, according to a report released Tuesday by the Pew Center on the States. The problems have the potential to affect the outcomes of local, state and federal elections.

One in eight active registrations is invalid or inaccurate. At the same time, one in four people who are eligible to vote — at least 51 million potential voters — are not registered.

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My Comment: The numbers are staggering .... but heh .... this has been going on for years, and no one wants to tighten it up.

Rep. Spencer Bachus Faces Insider-Trading Probe

Photo: U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus

Rep. Spencer Bachus Faces Insider-Trading Investigation -- Washington Post

The Office of Congressional Ethics is investigating the chairman of the House Financial Services Committee over possible violations of insider-trading laws, according to individuals familiar with the case.

Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), who holds one of the most influential positions in the House, has been a frequent trader on Capitol Hill, buying stock options while overseeing the nation’s banking and financial services industries.

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More News On Allegations Of Insider Trading Against Rep. Spencer Bachus

Report: Rep. Spencer Bachus faces insider trading probe -- L.A. Times
Rep. Bachus faces insider trading probe: report -- Reuters
Report: Bachus targeted in ethics investigation -- Politico
Alabama Congressman Spencer Bachus says he welcomes ethics investigation -- al.com
Bachus Predicts ‘Full Exoneration’ in Ethics Investigation -- Bloomberg
If Spencer Bachus Was Insider Trading, He Was Pretty Awful At It -- Business Insider

A Commentary On Policy Corruption

President Barack Obama meets with members of his Cabinet in the Cabinet Room of the White House, January 29, 2010. The President’s chair is marked with a plaque engraved with the date of his inauguration. (Official White House Photo by Pete Souza)

Intellectual And Policy Corruption -- Richard W. Rahn, Washington Times

Team Obama rewards its friends, punishes its foes.

Government corruption can take many forms. Last week, most of those forms could be seen in the actions of the Obama administration - everything from government officials taking simple bribes, to covering up wrongdoing, to using taxpayer money to pay off political supporters, to using government prosecutors to punish enemies, to failing to fulfill its fiduciary duty to citizens by not performing cost-benefit analyses before taking actions. Promulgating policies that knowingly hurt millions of people is far more serious than a government official requesting a cash bribe - as despicable as that may be. Pushing for tax increases without first getting rid of counterproductive or useless programs and cleaning up mismanagement is an example of policy corruption.

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My Comment: A hard hitting commentary .... and unfortunately so true.