Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group

Sunlight Live to cover Senate hearing on Super PACs and Citizens United

Join us on Sunlight Live as we cover the Senate Judiciary Committee's hearing examining the impact that Super PACs and the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision are having on elections. The hearing, called "Taking Back Our Democracy: Responding to Citizens United and the Rise of Super PACs," will be held by the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights and will be covered live today at 2:30p.m. today.

Penn State's powerful political influence

Businesses give $33 million to super PACs

Businesses have given more than $33 million to super PACs since the beginning of this campaign cycle, according to a Sunlight analysis of campaign finance reports. Trade unions gave at least $15 million in the same time period.

On the floor of Congress, lawmakers lionized Penn State's Joe Paterno

GOP-aligned Super PACs raised $227 million through June 30

Right-leaning Super PACs topped their Democratic rivals by a factor of nearly three-to-one from the start of 2011 through June 30, according to a Sunlight analysis of filings made through midnight Friday. In the first eighteen months of the presidential election cycle, Republican-oriented Super PACs brought in about $230 million while Democratic-leaning super PACs raised less than $80 million.

Gun interests spend millions to influence lawmakers

In the wake of the Batman movie massacre, Colorado's second mass killing in recent memory, much is being written about the unlikeliness of the tragedy leading to the kind of gun control legislation that might have prevented another troubled young man from amassing a huge arsenal. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg was quoted in the New York Times on Saturday venting his frustration at the inertia of both major party's presidential candidates.

Super PACs raise $55 million in June

Super PACs had their biggest month ever, raising over $55 million in June. That impressive haul brought super PAC's total fundraising since Jan 1. 2011 to more than $313 million. As of around June 30, super PAC's had about $110 million in the bank (that total includes groups filing reports due between June 27 and July 13). Monthly filers reporting the biggest June takes were Restore Our Future ($20.7 million), which backs Mitt Romney; Priorities USA ($6.2 million) which backs Barack Obama; and American Crossroads, ($5.8 million) lead by GOP strategist Karl Rove.

College Republican doubles down on super PAC

The college student whose super PAC helped propel a little-known Kentucky Republican to victory with $600,000 in outside spending has doubled down -- and then some.

Pro-gay GOP super PAC has one donor

Last month, Republican billionaire Paul Singer made news with the announcement of a new, unlikely super PAC: American Unity Inc. It's mission, according to the New York Times, which ran a story about the PAC on June 9, is to "encourage Republican candidates to support same-sex marriage."

Survey Says... House Republicans Schedule Bevy of Critical Dodd-Frank Hearings

House Republicans are on an anti-Dodd-Frank blitz, but with a populist twist, leading up to the financial reform law’s second birthday later this week.

GOP senators benefiting the most from NO DISCLOSE

Among the Republicans voting Tuesday to block a bill requiring disclosure of donors underwriting political ads were many who have benefited from the contributions of groups that don't disclose their donors.

Mexico’s president-elect hires DC lobbyists

Mexico’s President-elect, Enrique Peña Nieto, who takes office December 1, has hired lobbying firm Chlopak, Leonard, Schechter & Associates to represent him in Washington. According to documents filed with the Department of Justice (DOJ), the contract focuses on U.S. outreach and “monitoring of news and policy developments related to Mexico-U.S. interests.”

The black hole of political disclosure

Our Sunlight Foundation colleague, Lee Drutman, has written elsewhere about the amount of dark money -- political donations that come without donors attached -- flowing into this year's campaign. But what about the conduits? As the Senate debates the DISCLOSE Act this week, a measure that would take modest steps towards adding a little transparency back into the campaign finance system, it's worth taking a look at the entities that are taking advantage of the loopholes that allow them to avoid disclosing -- sometimes just donors, sometimes just about everything.

McCain campaigns for Romney, transparency or not

Political irony: That's probably the best definition for what happened Monday when when Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., probably the only GOP lawmaker to express interest in the Disclose Act, rallied Michigan on behalf of GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, who has turned his back on requests to be more open with his campaign finance.