Campaign Finance/Fair Elections
CNY News: Cuomo urges citizens to fight for Fair Elections during telephone town hall meeting
"Advocates heard Governor Andrew Cuomo make a call to action Monday night for grassroots organizations and supporters to fight for fair elections this legislative session."

BLT: Feingold Says Citizens United Ruling Has Caused 'Cancer on Our Democracy'
At the Common Cause conference yesterday: "At a conference today in Washington commemorating the 40th anniversary of the Watergate scandal, one of the main sponsors of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform law lamented that "there is a cancer on our democracy and on our economy because of the Citizens United decision."

Democracy 21: Watchdog groups question whether President Obama’s involvement in Organizing for Action complies with Ethics in Government Act
"In a letter sent today to President Obama, Democracy 21, joined by the Campaign Legal Center, wrote that 'your involvement with Organizing for Action (OFA) raises serious questions about whether you are complying with the Ethics in Government Act ban on the solicitation of gifts by executive branch officials, including the President.'"

ELB: Judge’s Order in Van Hollen Case Could Put Disclosure Litigation Back on Track
"A federal district judge who last year ordered the Federal Election Commission to increase disclosure requirements for political ads may get a chance to rule on the issue again, according to a March 12 court order."

Congress/2012
LA Times: Obama meets with new advocacy group
Obama at OFA: "In his first speech to Organizing for Action since its January launch, Obama urged former campaign donors, staff and volunteers to channel their resources and energy into the new entity." NYT, Politico, WaPo, Hill, Sunlight, USA Today, AP.

PCAF: McConnell’s Re-Election message of fighting Washington launched within days of raising money from Washington lobbyists
Yesterday, McConnell released his new ad saying that he was going to fight Washington. He has two fundraisers scheduled in Washngton this week. David Donnelly: “Kentuckians will be told he’s protecting them from Washington, but was he protecting them or his donors when Sen. McConnell gave away hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars to pharmaceutical giant Amgen in the fiscal cliff negotiations in December?"

NYT: A pro-gun charity's capitol influence
The New York Times editorializes on the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, a charity that gives gun interests access to lawmakers. "This charity shows how deeply rooted the influence of the gun industry is on Capitol Hill and why getting sensible gun measures out of Congress is so hard, even after young children are massacred in their classrooms."

USA Today: OFA is not a partisan organization
It's worth reading Jon Carson's op-ed on Organizing for Action: "Special interests have long played an outsized role influencing the policymaking process, so Organizing for Action (OFA) was established to change the balance of power. We are an organization of grassroots volunteers organizing their communities to support immigration reform, gun safety measures, curbs on climate change, and policies that strengthen the economy and the middle class."

Politico: Howard Berman signs up for K Street job
Howard Berman, a former House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair, is heading to Covington & Burling where he "will be advising international clients on U.S. and European Union regulations and working closely with the firm’s team in Brussels." Roll Call.

CRP: Paul Ryan's connections to insurance companies
Looking at Paul Ryan's budget, which is pretty friendly to insurance companies: "Over the course of Ryan's career in Congress, insurance has been the top industry (after retired people) contributing to his campaigns, with $895,928 in contributions since he first campaigned for his House seat, according to OpenSecrets.org data."

The Hill: K Street lobbyists leap to the planet's defense after asteroid scare
"Asteroids will no longer be safe, now that lobbyists have them in their sights. The commercial asteroid-mining company Planetary Resources has hired K&L Gates to represent it in Washington, with an eye on new opportunities — including, perhaps, the chance to defend life on Earth.

ProPublica: After a powerful lobbyist intervenes, EPA reverses stance on polluting Texas county’s water
Interesting look at a Texas energy company, a powerful lobbyist it hired, and the EPA.

CPI: Greeting card industry sending Congress special interest delivery
"Proposed cuts to the cash-hemorrhaging United States Postal Service, including eliminating Saturday delivery, are prompting outcries from lobbying interests as diverse as letter carriers to consumer groups."

Other/States
NYDN: Potential mega-donors agree: Super PACs in New York mayoral race just not plausible under state election law
"New York State election law bars donors from giving more than $150,000 in contributions in a single calendar year to all combined state and city races. Multimillion-dollar donors like Sheldon Adelson will have to save their money in this one."

NYT: Florida’s Lieutenant Governor resigns amid inquiry into sweepstakes firm
"The lieutenant governor of Florida, Jennifer Carroll, abruptly resigned on Tuesday, the result of a criminal investigation into an Internet sweepstakes company for which she once served as a consultant."