Sunlight Foundation Reporting Group

Solyndra investor had three White House meetings on energy policy

George B. Kaiser, the Obama campaign bundler and Tulsa oilman whose foundation's investment in Solyndra has raised questions of whether political influence played a role in the now-bankrupt solar panel company's winning $535 million in federal loans, had three White House meetings to discuss energy policy from Dec. 2009 to April 2011.

Bank fees are up, but disclosure is sorely lacking

As banks continue to raise their fees for consumer accounts, and free checking appears to be going the way of the dodo, banks have a decidedly spotty record on clearly disclosing these fees to their customers--even though they are required to do so by law.

Israel, Palestine spend millions on lobbying, PR campaigns

As the United Nations considers the Palestinian referendum for statehood, possibly as early as Friday, both parties are vying for an approval from the UN Security Council and for a U.S. vote. Both Israel and Palestine have a long history of lobbying the U.S. and in the past year alone, the Palestinian Liberation Organization spent over one million on public relations. During the same time, Israel spent over $13 million on lobbying, public relations and related costs. Both interests contacted important policy makers and set up a vast PR campaign.

Googling the audience

Yesterday, senators quizzed Google's former CEO and current board of directors president Eric Schmidt about the company's size, practices, and potential for anti-competitive behavior. Concerned that the government might try to flex its muscle against the search and mobile giant, Schmidt assured the senators that Google was no Microsoft, and that 2011 was no 1995.

Law professors push for corporations to disclose political spending

With corporate political spending--some of it secret--expected to explode in the 2012 election cycle, a group of law professors is petitioning the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to make a formal policy requiring corporations to disclose such expenditures to shareholders and the public.

Fourth "Supercommittee" Meeting to Review Tax Code

Thursday morning the Super Committee will convene for the fourth time since its creation in response to the debt crisis over the summer. The committee, officially named the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, conducted a breakfast meeting behind closed doors Sept. 15, despite the insistence of transparency by government watchdog groups and fellow legislators. Sen. Dean Heller, R-Nev., released a statement expressing his disappointment regarding the private breakfast.

Consumer groups protest disappearance of doctor discipline data

Robert Tenny, a doctor identified by the Kansas City star who was sued multiple times for malpractice.

Sunlight Live to cover antitrust panel probe into Google

A Senate subcommittee on Wednesday will become the latest group to question search engine powerhouse Google amidst rising concerns that the company is putting its own profits ahead of the best search results, and Sunlight Live will be there to follow the action starting 2 p.m E.T.

Super Committee, Boehner speech protests linked to major labor group

Our DC, a SEIU-linked protest group that stopped the first Super Committee meeting, has been regularly delivering a pro-jobs message to congressional Republicans: with some 100 protesters outside House Speaker John Boehner's speech at the Economic Club of Washington yesterday, according to organizers, who said the protest was in support of the American Jobs Act.

How do lobbyists snag front-row seats at hearings?

As the 12 members of the “super committee” scour the nation’s budget searching for at least $1.2 trillion in federal cuts, Washington lobbyists are watching their every move, hoping to protect the interests of their clients.

Who's watching the Super Committee?

A big audience turned out yesterday for the second meeting of the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, or the "super committee," as its 12 members asked questions of the first witness, CBO director Doug Elmendorf. The meeting was open to the public and there was live video on the committee's new website. 

Comments on Dodd-Frank's position limits rule came from petroleum marketing, airline industries

A handful of groups--including some backed by petroleum marketing firms, airlines and unions--were responsible for the great majority of some 13,000 comment letters sent to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission about a single proposed regulation mandated by Dodd-Frank, according to an analysis by the Sunlight Foundation.

Top donors to Super Committee House Dems lobby for Defense and Medicare funding

A replacement for the Space Shuttle, tax breaks for personal injury attorneys, two nuclear powered submarines and bigger Medicare reimbursements for some specialists and drugs are among the lobbying wish lists of the top career donors to the three House Democrats on the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, otherwise known as the super committee.

Sunlight Live to cover Super Committee meeting on Tuesday