Happy Monday, everyone. Check out this story on Occupy Toledo. A 55 year old dialysis technician told a reporter, "We've got to reform the campaign finance laws so we can hold politicians accountable. The people who have all the money have all the power." 

Campaign Finance/Fair Elections
Even worse than Citizens United
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/opinion/sunday/even-worse-than-citizens-united.html
Editorial this weekend: "The Justice Department is right to defend as essential the century-old ban on direct corporate contributions to political candidates for federal office. In a brief to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the lawyers challenge a wrongheaded ruling by Judge James Cacheris of Virginia, arguing that the ban serves the government’s strong interest in preventing political corruption."

Changing politics means finance reform
http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20111024/OPINION10/110240313/Changing-politics-means-finance-reform
A letter calling for Fair Elections. "Although far from perfect, it may help legislators remember that their constituents' interests are not the same as Wall Street's, and may also allow legislators to focus on the issues instead of fundraising."

Congress/2012
"Occupy" coward: Eric Cantor cancels Philly speech, by David Donnelly
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-donnelly/eric-cantor-fundraising_b_1023654.html?ref=tw
Eric Cantor was supposed to give a speech on income inequality Friday but he canceled it because there were going to be protests. "Cantor can speak (or not) until he’s blue in the face about how he understands income inequality in this country, but until he starts focusing on his constituents and the 99.95 percent of Americans who don’t make big campaign contributions, we know where his allegiances will really lie." The protests still happened. ThinkProgress took some pictures.

Buchanan pushes NASCAR tax break, reaps donations
http://htpolitics.com/2011/10/23/buchanan-pushes-nascar-tax-break-reaps-donations/
Rep. Vern Buchanan is pushing a tax break for NASCAR just a few months after he was scheduled to attend a NASCAR fundraiser. Me: "These donors knew what they were doing. This is our system. Members of Congress get donations and then they introduce legislation to benefit those donors.”

Rep. Tipton collected $10,600 from affiliates of SG interests
http://www.postindependent.com/article/20111024/VALLEYNEWS/111029957/1083&ParentProfile=1074
This is not a good lede for Scott Tipton to wake up to: "U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton's latest campaign finance report has raised questions on whether he can effectively mediate a dispute over gas drilling near Carbondale." David Donnelly: "“If Tipton is the ump, he's just been paid."

No holiday
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/24/opinion/no-tax-holiday.html
"Big business has clearly decided that the economic crisis is too important to waste. While Washington debates how to create jobs and cut the budget deficit, major corporations — read major campaign contributors — are pushing Congress for an enormous tax cut on corporate profits. Lawmakers seem all too eager to grant their wish." More on this "tax repatriation."

Sen, Jon Kyl hires renowned GOP lobbyist as his chief of staff
http://thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/189065-gop-sen-kyl-hires-lobbyist-as-chief-of-staff
Sen. Kyl is bringing on a big time lobbyist to be his chief of staff. Think that guy was working on supercommittee stuff?

Exxon knows Dems' "pandering" to supercommittee on taxes
http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/189161-exxon-knocks-dems-pandering-to-supercommittee-on-taxes
Exxon is not happy that Democrats are calling for an end to wasteful subsidies to oil companies as part of the supercommittee deal.

Supercommittee lobbying: 200 companies, 12 members
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66666.html
"In just six weeks, nearly 200 companies and special interests have reported that they’re lobbying the 12-member supercommittee." And how many of the lobbyists handed over campaign cash?

Top candidates happy to take Wall Street's money
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/10/23/MNA91LJVIB.DTL
A look at the Wall Street money fueling presidential coffers. "The finance, insurance and real estate sectors - known collectively as "FIRE" in campaign finance jargon - is a top contributor to all the major presidential candidates, funneling $16 million to the White House aspirants, according to the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, which charts the intersection of money and politics."

Follow the money
http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion/follow-the-money/15524/
Good editorial in the Times Union on fundraising trips to NYC: "The Republican presidential contenders do come here — but more for fundraising than votes. The parts of the state that most resemble the rest of America get overlooked."

Perry's K Street meet-and-greet
http://influencealley.nationaljournal.com/2011/10/perrys-k-street-meetandgreet.php
"Rick Perry swings through town Friday and is scheduled to meet with about 60 Washington insiders from the lobbying and trade association worlds. The afternoon event brings together Perry supporters and fence sitters to hear from the Texas governor as he continues to build inside-the-Beltway support for his presidential campaign..."

Corporate influence in politics emerges as a major concern among Occupy Santa Fe protestors
http://www.santafenewmexican.com/Local%20News/Occupy-Santa-Fe--Single-issue--band
An Occupy report from Santa Fe: "The theme of too much money and corporate influence in politics is a major concern among the Occupy Santa Fe participants."

Herman Cain, running as outsider, came to Washington as lobbyist
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/us/politics/herman-cain-running-as-outsider-came-to-washington-as-lobbyist.html
Herman Cain says he's not like Washington politicians, but for a few years, he was a lobbyist in Washington. "From 1996, when he left the pizza company, until 1999, Mr. Cain ran the National Restaurant Association, a once-sleepy trade group that he transformed into a lobbying powerhouse."

Solyndra-linked fundraiser still boosting Obama campaign
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-obama-solyndra-fundraiser-20111024,0,6320187.story
"A former Energy Department official linked to the failed Solyndra solar enterprise deal continues to raise campaign money for President Obama and helped plan a fundraising luncheon that the president will attend in San Francisco on Tuesday."

Bachmann's lack of big donors could hinder campaign
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/21/bachmanns-lack-of-big-donors-could-hinder-campaign/
Michele Bachmann might have a lot of small donors--but they aren't going to give her the money she needs to stay competitive. "There is a reason candidates court big donors. Yes, they have more money. But more important, the net share of their donations is far greater than from low-dollar donors."

A new way to buy influence
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66673.html
Read this. "Good news for rich people, corporate power players and labor bosses who want to buy some real influence with members of Congress: it just got a lot easier."

Battles to shape maps, and Congress, go to courts
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/23/us/battles-to-shape-maps-and-congress-go-to-courts.html
Funny thing in this NYT article on redistricting: "Republican officials wrote that Representative Lamar Smith wanted his district redrawn to include the San Antonio Country Club." Wonder why?

Supercommittee needs more transparency
http://helenair.com/news/opinion/editorial/supercommittee-needs-more-transparency/article_e7ae2a96-fd41-11e0-93d3-001cc4c002e0.html
The Helena Independent Record wants more (any?) transparency from the supercommittee. Some members of Congress aren't happy either.

Former members' campaigns alive, well and spending money
http://thehill.com/homenews/news/189253-former-members-campaigns-alive-well-and-spending-money
"The handful of members of Congress who have resigned amid scandal in recent years have maintained active campaign accounts, federal records show, and they have spent tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions on legal fees, travel, public relations consultants and, in at least one case, the salary of a family member."

Other
Who didn't pay for the 2010 campaign? Special interests, by Cheri Quickmire
http://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/ctnj.php/archives/entry/op-ed_who_didnt_pay_for_the_2010_campaign_special_interests
Cheri at Common Cause Connecticut writes: "In 2005, Connecticut was released from the grip of corruption and pay to play scandals by the passage and signing into law of the Citizens’ Election Program. This program has since worked well to free elected officials from reliance on special interest money, and making them accountable directly to the citizens of Connecticut."

Did campaign contributions help horse tracks beat the casinos?
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_c337d34f-e4f4-51bd-a1a1-2a67e150aae3.html
"The heated battle over gambling expansion in Illinois has been fueled by more than $400,000 in campaign donations from both sides in the first nine months of this year alone, according to data compiled by the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform, a Chicago-based political watchdog group."