Campaign Finance/Fair Elections
The Taxman cometh  
Great rebuttal from the Brennan Center to the Wall Street Journal's hysterical op-ed yesterday on the gift tax.

Republican Senators seek answers on IRS gift tax enforcement
And Republican Senators are now getting in the "is the gift tax enforcement politics" game. Unfortunately, Bloomberg cut out the "While conspiracy theorists want you to believe otherwise" first half of my quote: "It's clear that the IRS is just doing its job, enforcing the law."
- Here's the Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/19/us/politics/19donate.html

White House seeks executive order to expose anonymous political spending
Good piece in the nation on the executive order, DISCLOSE, Fair Elections, etc. "Notably the Chamber isn’t opposing the fact that federal contractors spend money influencing the political process, but rather that they would have to disclose that spending—as if that’s where the politicization would come in."

Congress/2012
Outside money pours into update NY, nontheists to Washington, and more
Today's CRP update--big spenders in the NY-26 special election and the Secular Coalition for America heads to DC to meet with lawmakers.

GOP donors deserting Newt Gingrich
It's not just new ideas that are drying up in Gingrich land--so are big donors.

UBS invests in Washington
A great story by TW Farnam on UBS involvement in Washington as it faces several regulatory investigations. "Over the past decade, while the investigations into UBS were unfolding, the bank’s employees and PAC gave $11 million in federal campaign contributions."

Mitch McConnell pushes hand out to big oil donors
Along with the Energy Action Coalition, we got this out to Kentucky yesterday about McConnell's many Big Oil favors over the past month or so.

Dems press Obama to recess appoint Elizabeth Warren to run Consumer Bureau
Democrats are pushing Obama to give Elizabeth Warren the CFPB job during recess. Republicans  "have vowed that they will not allow consideration of any nominee to head the CFPB until the bureau is weakened. They would rather hold your appointment hostage and obstruct the process than make sure consumers have a strong advocate on their side."

New tax evasion law has foreign investors looking to K Street
"A new law designed to prevent offshore tax evasion has set off a surge of lobbying, with several foreign financiers and trade associations turning to K Street for the first time."

Sen. Barrasso, when do you have time for constituents?
From our blog: a run down of Sen. Barrasso's "oil and gas industry breakfast" and "health industry lunch" today.

Obama campaign selling "birther" t-shirts
Ha. Obama 2012 has "birther" items for sale in its fundraising shop.

Ex-Rep. Boucher announces next gig
And former Rep. Rick Boucher makes his trip to the revolving door and lands at Sidley Austin.

Some question Black Chamber of Commerce
"The nonprofit, established in 1993 to advance the interests of black entrepreneurs, has long opposed regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. But its recent forays into the debate over government regulation of menthol cigarettes, for-profit colleges and AT&T's proposed merger with T-Mobile have raised concerns among some other African-American businessmen about the group's agenda."

Other
Ethics complaints over Wisconsin union bill dismissed
The Wisconsin Government Accountability Board dismissed all complaints surrounding the union busting bill.