An important story at Huffington Post about efforts in North Carolina to gut the state's popular judicial public financing program. Art Pope, who financed the Republican takeover of the state and has never liked the program, was recently named the governor's budget director. The governor's budget cuts the program.

North Carolina Voters for Clean Elections' Melissa Price Kromm: "Polls show that the public supports this program, and every candidate in judicial races in the last election entered into the system. Why should the program be cut?"

Crossing mediums here to offer a #FF (follow friday) to the new NY Fair Elections campaign twitter account, @FairElectionsNY. Give it a follow, you'll be glad you did.

Campaign Finance/Fair Elections
NYT: Calls for reform
Great video of the Fair Elections campaign presser on the steps of NYC City Hall on Wednesday. Oh, and, there were more public corruption arrests in New York yesterday.

YNN Syrcause: Voters want campaign finance reform
A great event in Syracuse last night: "Local voters had the attention of state leaders Thursday night as the cry for campaign finance reform grows louder in the wake of recent events." Here's a pic of the standing room only event

Daily Kos: Jeff Merkley vows to continue fight for filibuster reform and reversing Citizens United
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D- Ore.) talked up filibuster reform and his Citizens United amendment at a recent town hall forum.

AP: AG Holder wants voting rights law upheld
"On the 45th anniversary of Martin Luther King's death, Attorney General Eric Holder challenged the Supreme Court to uphold a key section of the Voting Rights Act that requires all or part of 15 states with a history of discrimination to get federal clearance before carrying out changes in elections." Black congressmen "let loose" on voter suppression efforts.

NYT: Scandal suggests narrower corruption law still survived
The U.S. Supreme Court's Skilling decision that took away some teeth of public corruption cases seems to be holding up OK in New York this week.

Congress/Admin
WaPo: For mega-donors, if price is right, ambassadorship may be too.
Al Kamen column on ambassadorships and campaign cash.

CRP: Gun rights group has close ties to Paul family
Rand Paul has denied ties to a gun rights group using his name to attack Republicans, but his campaign has paid the guy running it big bucks in the past.

Karl Rove-linked aides launch Kentucky super PAC
A former Crossroads aide and a former McConnell aide are launching a super PAC in Kentucky. "Jennings declined to say if the group is explicitly backing McConnell, but he is a longtime aide and a veteran of several establishment GOP candidates" Courier-Journal

Politico: The $32,400 brunch
"President Obama kicked off his DNC fundraising in California Thursday with a $32,400-per-head brunch at the Atherton home of investment guru Mark W. Heising and his wife, Liz Simons."

The Hill: Carney: Obama fundraising push for Pelosi in California a "traditional exercise"
Jay Carney got a question about Obama's California fundraising: "White House press secretary Jay Carney on Thursday defended President Obama's fundraising swing through California, saying that despite 'rhetoric from the other side' critical of the president, his push on behalf of Democratic Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi was 'a traditional exercise.'"

Politico: Sheldon Adelson testifies: "I'm not trying to razzle dazzle you"
"Casino mogul and GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson calmly defended his company before a Nevada jury Thursday afternoon, during testimony in a breach of contract case that at times became feisty."

Cleveland Plain-Dealer: "Group that attacked Sherrod Brown and President Obama now subject of complaint"
CREW has filed an FEC complaint against the group "Checks and Balances for Economic Growth" for not reporting its ad spending.

HuffPost: Marijuana super PAC started by brothers to push weed legalization
An interview with the guys behind the marijuana super PAC. "If we could all pool our collective interests and pockets books, maybe we could actually shine a light on the hypocrisy of the laws being put on the books."

The Hill: PAC launches to support bearded political candidates
There's really a growing industry of filing super PACs with ridiculous names just to get press coverage.

Other/States
CPI: Governors groups rely increasingly on "dark money" affiliates
"The Democratic and Republican governors’ associations are increasingly relying on nonprofit affiliates to get their candidates elected and influence ballot initiatives, a move that allows them to avoid disclosing the identity of their donors." Related: the IRS accidentally released some donor info about RGA's nonprofit affiliate.

KFYI: New report blasts ALEC for AZ lobbying
New report in Arizona on ALEC.

Gavel Grab: Wisconsin TV ad spending exceeded $1.1 million
"TV ad spending in the Wisconsin Supreme Court race that concluded this week exceeded $1.1 million, and more than two-thirds of it came from conservative interest groups, Justice at Stake and the Brennan Center for Justice reported on Thursday."

Our Colorado News: Gun lobbyist's actions eyed in ethics probe
"A gun lobbyist is at the center of an ethics probe into whether he threatened an Evergreen lawmaker with political reprisal over her votes on recent gun bills."