They've got a great list of speakers lined up at the Rootstrikers conference on April 20th in San Francisco.

Also on the calendar: A hearing in a Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on April 9th with the vague title, “Current Issues in Campaign Finance Law Enforcement."

Campaign Finance/Fair Elections
Public Campaign blog: WV House Passes Bill to Make Permanent Judicial Public Financing
"The West Virginia House of Delegates passed legislation Wednesday to make permanent the state’s judicial public financing system for elections to the state's highest court, the Supreme Court of Appeals. HB 2085 passed the House on a vote of 70 to 29."

NC Policy Watch: Even more voter suppression bills introduced
Some North Carolina lawmakers really don't want college kids to vote (and other bills). More at Facing South. Brennan Center has a full round up of voter restriction bills.

Baltimore Sun: Campaign finance reform advances in the Senate
A mixed bag of a bill in Maryland: local enabling for public financing, closed LLC loophole, increased reporting and enforcement, but a big increase in contribution limits. A slightly different version has passed the House and the two would have to be reconciled.

Times-Union: Looking for a way to end scandal in NY
Two press conferences in NY yesterday - on the steps of NYC City Hall and in Albany - to call for action in the wake of more corruption arrests. Karen Scharff: "As long as the first thing you need to do when you run for office is raise hundreds of thousands of dollars, we're going to have a 'show-me-the-money culture,' as the U.S. attorney put it. We want transparency, disclosure, lower limits, better enforcement. ... But without public financing you're not going to change the culture. Transparency is not going to stop this." AP, Gannett (with video), Journal News, YNN.

Democrat and Chronicle: Campaign finance reform advocates start mailing push
"Advocates of reforming the state’s campaign finance laws kicked off a mailing campaign this week, sending out mailers in targeted districts as they ratchet up their efforts in support of a public financing system." Journal News.

TED: We the people, and the Republic we must reclaim
Professor Larry Lessig's TED talk is up. Give it a watch!

ELB: Weintraub faults FEC delay resolving case involving calls that attacked Rep. McHenry
"A new Federal Election Commission deadlock over an enforcement case that involved 'robo-calls' attacking Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) has prompted FEC Chairwoman Ellen Weintraub to criticize her own agency."

Congress/Admin
AP: Obama fundraises, catches Keystone heat in California
Obama went to California to raise money and faced a big protest against the Keystone pipeline outside. CREDO's Becky Bond: "We don't come with $32,000 checks, so we have to be really loud." NYT, LAT.

WaPo: Carville signs on with pro-Hillary super PAC
"A person familiar with Ready for Hillary PAC’s outreach efforts tells Post Politics that Carville will join the effort and will send an e-mail Thursday asking supporters to do the same."

WaPo: Obama said to pick Bruce Heyman for Canada
"President Obama’s pick to be ambassador to Canada is fellow Chicagoan Bruce Heyman, a Goldman Sachs partner in the Windy City, mega-fundraiser and member of the Obama campaign’s national finance committee, CBC News in Canada reported Wednesday."

NYT: Are rich politicials less corruptible?
New York Time's latest "Room for Debate." Obviously read Sheila Krumholz's response: "Given the disparities, rich officials won't necessarily bring better representation to average -- to say nothing of poor -- Americans."

Sunlight: GOP makes first 2014 ad buys against Democratic House members
"The National Republican Congressional Committee is making its first ad buy of the 2014 season with a blitz against seven vulnerable House Democrats."

CPI: Air show lobbyists to buzz Capitol Hill
"A trade group for air shows — stung in recently weeks by sequestration's grounding of military aircraft demonstrations — is launching a government affairs offensive."

CPI: Center invests in finance, money-in-politics coverage
Center for Public Integrity is adding a couple of money-in-politics reporters to its already great team.

Mother Jones: Sen. Roy Blunt, Monsanto's man in Washington
Sen. Blunt has admitted to the Monsanto rider in a recent Senate bill--a company that has given him big bucks over the years.

The Hill: Ex-judiciary chief counsel to join lobbying firm
"The former chief counsel and staff director of the House Judiciary Committee is leaving Capitol Hill to join the Covington & Burling lobbying team." Roll Call.

Boston Globe: Former Romney aides join opposing camps in Mass Senate race
Romneyites aren't on the same page in the GOP primary in the Mass Senate race. And now, "Fehrnstrom, Romney’s former spokesman, is helping to create ads for the Committee for a Better Massachusetts, a SuperPAC that is backing Republican Senate candidate Gabriel E. Gomez."

Fuel Fix: Reforming the tax code - a work in progress
Won't release the names of industry leaders either: "Leaders of the Congressional working group charged with rewriting the tax code as it relates to energy spent two hours Tuesday huddled with industry leaders in Houston, looking for ideas to take back to Washington."

Roll Call: Capito raises $915,000 for Senate bid
A solid first quarter for Rep. Capito, who now has $2.35 cash on hand for her Senate bid.

Plain Dealer: Former Rep. Steve LaTourette lines up blue chip clients
"Since launching a government relations and lobbying subsidiary of the McDonald Hopkins law firm this year, former Bainbridge Township GOP Rep. Steve LaTourette and his wife, Jennifer, have amassed a roster of blue chip clients."

Other/States
News and Observer: Save public funding for judicial races
Great op-ed in North Carolina by Brennan Center's Alicia Bannon: "Voters and judges in North Carolina agree that justice should not be for sale. Unfortunately, the legislature and governor look poised to eliminate a successful program that helps judicial candidates say no to special interest money."

Post-Gazette: Judge throws out all campaign finance limits in Pittsburgh mayoral race
"Judge Joseph James voided the contribution limits in the Pittsburgh mayor's race Tuesday, finding that an excess contribution by a candidate no longer in the race had triggered their suspension."

Daily Union: Fort, Whitewater pass Move to Amend referendum
Wisconsin: "Voters in the cities of Fort Atkinson and Whitewater strongly supported a measure supporting the national Move to Amend movement to get a constitutional amendment to rescind the concept of "corporate personhood" and generally curbing election spending by special interest groups."

WaPo: Virginia campaign finance law needs more teeth
Washington Post editorial on the hubbub over Gov. McDonnell and some gifts from a donor whose company is under federal investigation. "Adding to the odor surrounding all this is the fact that Star Scientific, by its own account, is under investigation by federal prosecutors in Virginia for possible securities irregularities. It’s hard to suppress the thought that Virginians will be hearing more about this story in the future."

Miami Herald: Hialeah pain clinic owner pleads guilty to making illegal campaign contributions
"Politically active Hialeah pain clinic owner Mark Cereceda pleaded guilty Wednesday after investigators found he made his employees contribute illegal donations to political campaigns across the state."