Minding the Money
Scuffles over the involvement of independent groups and their millions of dollars in ad spending sparked the discussion over moving to public financing of elections for judicial races in Washington last year. Will similar concerns about independent expenditures in this year's high-profile gubernatorial match-up in the state move the discussion forward? The wealthy and powerful Building Industry Association of Washington just got smacked for breaking fundraising rules by raising quite a bit of money before formally organizing themselves as a political action committee (PAC). According to this article (which quickly becomes a Rumble in the Press Release Jungle) BIAW has spent over $2 million already in their effort to oust sitting Gov. Christine Gregoire (D). Discrepancies on the part of BIAW were caught this time around but they're hardly the only wealthy group throwing an elbow in this year's elections. Will concern over the murkier corners of campaign raising and spending spur action behind Clean Elections proposals next year?