Money continues to pour into the 2020 presidential race amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to new campaign finance reports filed with the Federal Election Commission this weekend. Here are some of the most vital numbers to know from an Issue One analysis of these filings, which detail the money presidential candidates raised and spent in May. Election Day is currently
Read MoreIssue One Executive Director Meredith McGehee today commended the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for opening the door to consideration of a potential new rulemaking that could limit the amount of leftover campaign funds a candidate who self-funded their campaign could legally transfer to national party committees. “If the FEC does not take action to close this loophole, it’s virtually guaranteed
Read MoreIssue One on Wednesday sent a letter to the leaders of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees opposing a new Pentagon proposal to weaken post-employment lobbying restrictions on former senior Pentagon officials in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021. “Allowing former senior Pentagon officials to take information they received and the relationships they developed as public
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Even before the coronavirus crisis upended the lives of millions of Americans and the operations of countless government agencies, the Federal Election Commission (FEC) was already struggling. Today, in fact, marks the start of the eighth month since the nation’s campaign finance watchdog lost its ability to do its job due to the resignation of one commissioner in August. This
Read MoreOn Friday night, presidential candidates were required to file new campaign finance reports that detailed the money they raised and spent in February — a time before the spread of coronavirus upended the lives of Americans across the country. Here are some of the most crucial numbers to know from the latest reports. $2.1 billion: Total amount of money spent
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At his confirmation hearing last week in the Senate Rules Committee, Texas attorney Trey Trainor’s remarks raised serious questions about whether he should be confirmed to serve on the Federal Election Commission (FEC), a post for which he has been nominated by President Donald Trump. “The answers that Trey Trainor gave at his confirmation hearing did not allay concerns about
Read MorePrivate jets, luxury hotels, and expensive meals are par for the course as a majority of leadership PAC spending strays further from its intended purposes. A new report today released by Issue One and Campaign Legal Center (CLC) shows that instead of doling out funds to political allies, members of Congress routinely use leadership PAC funds to pay for expensive meals, rounds of golf,
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Last week, Representatives Derek Kilmer (D-WA), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Scott Peters (D-CA), John Sarbanes (D-MD), Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Stephanie Murphy (D-FL), and Julia Brownley (D-CA) re-introduced bipartisan legislation to overhaul the dysfunctional Federal Election Commission (FEC) and to ensure effective and consistent enforcement of the nation’s election laws. The Restoring Integrity to America’s Elections Act (H.R. 1272) makes structural changes
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Systemic institutional dysfunction was a leading cause for more than 50 Republican and Democratic members of Congress who voluntarily did not seek re-election this year, according to a new joint report by Issue One and the R Street Institute. Interviews with a select group of over half a dozen outgoing and recently-retired lawmakers who were vocal about why they chose
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Today, Issue One and the Campaign Legal Center called on the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to enforce penalties against Americans for Job Security — one of the top spenders of political “dark money” in recent years — for failing to file three years’ worth of mandatory tax returns. For this, Americans for Job Security could be punished with the loss
Read MoreCongress needs to act immediately to provide states with the emergency federal funding they need to run safe, secure and credible elections in November. The previous federal funding was an important down payment, but reports from state and local election officials indicate substantially more federal emergency assistance is needed as soon as possible. Issue One and many others are working to convince Senators to vote in July for more funding so that our November elections are safe, secure, and fair.
