Fair Elections/Campaign Finance Several big donors to Hillary Clinton now having criminal allegations The headline is a good summary of the story, and here’s Public Citizen’s Craig Holman: “When you turn to that traditional wealthy donor base, you're going to run into a lot of problems because they encompass the type of people who know that big money buys influence.” Lucking out inside the beltway This New York Times editorial goes after the freshmen members of the Armed Forces Committee and their defense contractor fundraiser last week. “Ethical issues are patently the heart of the matter. It’s shameful that the House and its ethics committee continue to duck the pay-to-play implications of their relentless fund-raisers.” Congress/2012 Rep. Rivera’s fundraising consultant collected $817,000 in fees since 2006 And the Rep. Rivera scandal continues to unfold. Poll: Two California Democrats in close special election contest Some interesting tidbits in a new poll out today regarding the special election to replace Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.): The results showed 28 percent would vote for a candidate who is “promising to create jobs” and 26 percent would vote for a candidate who is “promising to make government more transparent and accountable.” The next issue was 17 percent for a candidate who is “ promising to crack down on Wall Street and hold big corporations accountable.”   Aircraft titans spark lobby blitz A good review of the battle between EADS and Boeing over new aircraft tankers—and the massive lobbying push involved. Wisconsin power play This is a column about Wisconsin, but this line is right on the money about our political system generally: “In principle, every American citizen has an equal say in our political process. In practice, of course, some of us are more equal than others. Billionaires can field armies of lobbyists; they can finance think tanks that put the desired spin on policy issues; they can funnel cash to politicians with sympathetic views (as the Koch brothers did in the case of Mr. Walker). On paper, we’re a one-person-one-vote nation; in reality, we’re more than a bit of an oligarchy, in which a handful of wealthy people dominate. Given this reality, it’s important to have institutions that can act as counterweights to the power of big money. And unions are among the most important of these institutions.“     Ron Paul plans “money bomb.” Will Ron Paul run for president again? This “money bomb” plan makes it seem likely—he raised $700k on president’s day. Other Billionaire brothers’ money plays role in Wisconsin dispute I know we’re all shocked to learn that the Koch Brothers’ and their money is likely playing a role in Wisconsin. “This is a dangerous moment in America history,” Mr. Edgar said. “It is not that these folks don’t have a right to participate in politics. But they are moving democracy into the control of more wealthy corporate hands.”         Unions launch TV ad campaign backing Wisconsin public employees AFLCIO is up with a new statewide buy in Wisconsin. AFL’s Eddie Vale: “People who work for a living will never keep up with the Koch brothers and what corporate CEOs plan to spend, but the students, teachers, firefighters, cops, activists and everyday citizens who are showing up day after day want to make sure their voices are heard” Maine State Rep: “WI War is About Every Worker.” A Maine State Rep, elected using Clean Elections, hopped in her car and went to Wisconsin. “I grew up quite poor in Western Maine. The only reason I have the chance to serve the people of this great state is because of public financing. The great thing about public financing is that I am entirely beholden to the best interests of my people, not to the Corporatocracy that has taken over our democratic Republic.” Awesome. Influence-peddling hurdles party-lines This column in Pittsburgh about influence peddling in the PA state legislature argues, “While we're at it, we should also move toward instituting publicly financed elections. That's the only way we can have a shot at draining the swamp of corruption that engulfs our state.”