Congress/2012
Watchdogs want more lobbying info from supercommittee members
"[A] coalition of government reform and transparency organizations are demanding that supercommittee members voluntarily disclose their committee-related contacts with lobbyists and publicly report any campaign donations within 48 hours of receiving them." Transparency is important, should be tied with a halt to fundraising.

Lawmakers seek transparency from supercommittee
Peter Overby looks at supercommittee fundraising, etc. This quote about Becerra says a lot: "Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-CA) points out that unlike senators, who face re-election every six years, he and other House members have campaigns to finance every two years. He says he would happily stop raising election money if he heard his opponents weren't raising money or if he didn't have to pay for campaign activities." Becerra, of course, won 84% of the vote in his 2010 election.

Supercommittee under lobbyist assault
Mimi Marziani at the Brennan Center writes about the need for supercommittee transparency.

Transparency essential for supercommittee
The Billings Gazette calls for transparency in supercommittee meetings. They should've gone further.

Money, politics still mix for most on Congress' debt panel
McClatchy looks at fundraising and the supercommittee. Public Campaign President Nick Nyhart: "For most Americans, it is very distressing. I worry that Americans have given up on the ability of government to make decisions in the interests of the public, and not in the interests of the big-lobby crowd and the big-money crowd."

Big oil front group to supercommittee: let us do our thing
The American Petroleum Institute pulled a Chris Crocker, telling Congress to leave them alone. Two API lobbyists used to be top aides to supercommittee members Rep. Dave Camp (R-Mich.) and Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.).

Despite Romney's $100k Boeing stock holdings, spokesman denies possible conflict of interest in NLRB criticisms
"As Mitt Romney steps up his attacks on the National Labor Relations Board for its decision to block Boeing from retaliating against striking workers by building a new plant in South Carolina, a new report from Bloomberg notes that the former Massachusetts governor owns a significant amount of stock in the Seattle-based aerospace corporation."

Khazei to push Warren on PACs
One of Elizabeth Warren's Democratic opponents in the Mass. Senate race said yesterday, "In her opening campaign video, Warren said, 'Washington is rigged for big corporations that hire armies of lobbyists," Khazei noted. "If she's true to her words, she'll join me in rejecting contributions from every single PAC and corporate lobbyist."

Another view: Why CEOs need to engage Washington
CEOs should be engaging Washington politicians, this person writes. "The engagement of chief executives with Washington can take many forms. The traditional steps of making campaign contributions, joining trade associations and hiring government relations staff members remain important. But they are no longer sufficient."

Rick Perry's governing style. Secrecy over straight talk?
Oh, do read this. "Gov. Rick Perry’s straight talk may have made him an instant star of the Republican presidential field, but even some of his supporters say his frank one-liners don’t reflect his governing style in Texas, where Perry has been criticized as one of the most secretive governors in the country."

Rick Perry's devotion to NRA-backed proposals reaps campaign aid and grassroots support
Perry has close ties to NRA and their big donors.

Approval of Congress matches record low
Yup, people still don't like Congress. Interesting follow-up interview from a Republican maintenance technician in Missouri: "they get persuaded by the almighty dollar."

Republicans rewriting state election laws in ways that could hurt Democrats
While true, the headline is a bit off. It should be, "in ways that could hurt democracy."

LightSquared: Did White House pressure General Shelton to help donor?
"The Pentagon has worried for months that a project backed by a prominent Democratic donor might interfere with military GPS. Now Congress wants to know if the White House pressured a general to change his testimony."

House approves bill limiting NLRB
The House passed a bill yesterday blocking the NLRB from going after companies that retaliate against workers.

Other/States
Big races, big titles control big campaign dollars
AP story on fundraising for the Virginia legislature.

Granny D Exhibit
This looks interesting! "Those letters and more, along with commendations, awards, and books and films about and by Haddock will be on display at Keene State College's Mason Library in a special collection opening this month. A celebration including speakers and musical performances will be held Sept. 24 at 1 p.m."

Letter links Edgewater debacle to Walker
"In an act that could add another layer of controversy to a city debate spanning nearly two and a half years, a Madison School Board member recently wrote a letter linking a prominent development project to the election campaign of the governor."