The Moscow Project is dedicated to getting to the bottom of the Trump/Russia story.

Courtesy of Slate: 

With Reid no longer in the Senate, Jentleson now works full time to understand and publicize the Trump-Russia story. In February, he helped found the Moscow Project at the CAP Action Fund, an arm of the Center for American Progress. With a staff of five that will soon double to 10, the project is part clearinghouse, part think tank, and part private investigation agency; it recently hired a Russian-speaking forensic accountant from a high-profile firm. Its website keeps track of the ever-expanding story of the scandal and its key players, while its staffers brief members of Congress and compile reports on matters related to the Trump-Russia nexus. They try to coordinate experts across fields—including money laundering and counterintelligence—to get the clearest possible picture of what is happening with the scandal and the investigation. “There are so many different angles that there’s not one person who knows everything,” said Jentleson’s Moscow Project colleague Max Bergmann, a former member of the State Department’s policy planning staff.

“You don’t have to believe that Trump is a full-on agent of Russian intelligence to believe that what’s already been established about his connections is deeply troubling,” Jentleson said. “Especially when you combine them with the policy positions that he’s taking towards Russia.” Yet because there’s still so much that we don’t know about Trump and Russia, and so much deliberate misinformation floating around, it’s easy for anyone tracking all the connections to fall into paranoid rabbit holes. For Jentleson and his colleagues, part of the work of the Moscow Project is to limn a possible conspiracy without falling into conspiracy theorizing. “Everything that comes out of our project has been vetted through CAP’s team of policy experts, and frankly our legal team,” he said.

Well I think this seems like a more than worth endeavor.

And who knows, they might actually get to the truth of this story before any of the many investigations manage to bring the revelations to light.

(You can click here for more information about the Moscow Project.)

P.S. By the way Teen Vogue of all people has a really comprehensive timeline for the Russian story.

It is a good resource for keeping everything in perspective, and remembering what happened when.

Mike Pence launches new PAC. Things that make you go "Hmmm."

Courtesy of NBC News:  

Vice President Mike Pence is launching his own PAC — the "Great America Committee" — to aid his own future political interests, including helping Republican candidates ahead of the 2018 midterms. 

The group, which filed paperwork with the FEC on Wednesday, will be able to use the funds to cover the costs of the vice president's travels on Air Force Two to campaign on behalf of GOP candidates across the country. 

This is the first time a sitting vice president has formed such a separate political arm. Former administration officials have used either party or campaign funds to cover travel costs.

A source close to the vice president said the organization will "provide resources for the vice president to actually support candidates who are supportive of the president's agenda."

Of course they are dismissing the idea that this has anything to do with Pence's plans to run in 2020, but I mean come on, is anybody really buying that?

The last sitting VP to do this was George H. W. Bush, and of course we know why HE did it.

I actually think that Pence has been positioning himself for a 2020 run since the inauguration.

And currently Pence is doing his invisible man act in order to stay out of the line of fire while Trump gets hit from all sides.

Courtesy of CNN:

It's hard for a vice president of the United States to disappear from sight. After all, you are the second most powerful person in the country and all that. 

Despite those challenges, Vice President Mike Pence has been nearly invisible for the last 48 hours or so -- even as the Trump Administration has been buffeted by a slew of negative stories that have occasioned a special counsel to be named to oversee the ongoing Russia probe.

So yeah he's running in 2020, and I'd bet the farm that he is hoping the investigations take the giant orange asshole out of his way soon so that he can become the president right now and get started on rolling back voting rights and women's access to birth control, like he's always dreamed of doing. 

There now exists in the world the "Donald Trump has tiny hands" SuperPAC. Sure why not?

Courtesy of Crooks and Liars:

A spokesman for the SuperPac, Henry Kraemer was interviewed by KATU News. He said the following: 

"A lot of people have voiced concern about giving a man with Donald Trump's experience and temperament the nuclear launch codes. We are not sure if it means anything to give him the launch codes, because we don't know if his stubby little fingers can push the buttons down all the way. 

If we cant trust him about his hands, which any child can see are tiny, what can we trust him on? If you can't trust a mans handshake, how can you trust their word?"

I might usually consider this a little undignified concerning a presidential candidate, but this is Donald Trump and he invites this kind of ridicule himself.

Besides it's the kind of thing he might feel obligated to respond to publicly and that just makes it all the more entertaining.

Well Palin didn't make the big NRA event in Nashville, but her rolling billboard did.

Palin 2016! #SteelSpine #HillaysNemesis @SarahPalinUSA pic.twitter.com/8B5K2K17FB
— PalinRepublican (@nochangeplease) April 12, 2015

That Political Earthquake PAC was super excited that Palin was scheduled to appear, so they hurriedly raised money for this sad little billboard.

Unfortunately for them her last minute decision to bail left them with a sign that is the very definition of pathetic.

Can you smell the desperation?

Courtesy of an e-mail sent by SarahPAC treasurer Tim Crawford and posted over at US4Palin the heading of which was "We Need $10,000 Before Midnight!:

Dear [Donor], 

Today marks the end of the first quarter, and we need your help to show a strong financial standing. 

The far left is looking to us as a symbol of the “whackjobs“.  (Gee I can't imagine why.) We need to show them that we are strong and united in fighting their anti-American agenda. (WTF?) Our disclosure reports will send a message: that the conservative principles this country were founded on are alive and well. 

We have less than ten hours to go until the deadline. When the clock strikes midnight, we have to legally start tallying every donation. (Or else Sarah Palin's wing turns into a pumpkin.) We must make this one count, friends. Please show the strength of conservatives all around the country by donating now. 

Today, the liberal media has launched attacks against Sarah Palin and everything she stands for. If you agree with her, please donate now. Show the media that patriotism is not something to be ashamed of, but something to be lived out. We need your help by midnight to elect strong American leaders. 

Thank you for your support. And let us not forget what makes this country great: those that are willing to fighting for what they believe–you. 

Regards, 

Tim Crawford

Looks like this next quarterly report from SarahPAC is going to be even more disappointing than the last ones. By quite a margin too.

 Gee, what a shame.

I like how they make it seem as if donating to Palin is somehow supporting the very idea of conservatism, and protecting what they perceive as the values of this country.

For fuck's sake she is a washed up ex-politician, and a failed reality show star, NOT the second coming of Jesus.

"Stop Chris Christie" PAC closes up shop because...you know...why bother?

Courtesy of MSNBC:  

Former Republican congressman Tom Tancredo of Colorado is all but throwing in the towel on the political action committee he created to stop New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s potential run for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016 — but only because he believes the governor has no chance of winning. 

Citing Christie’s sagging poll numbers and what he described as the governor’s “questionable” behavior, Tancredo told msnbc, “We have not really tried to raise any money because frankly we assumed it would probably not be worth the time we put into it because now nobody believes the guy has a chance. ” He added, “I don’t think anyone’s going to give money to stop Chris Christie — someone who they believe is probably stopped already.”

Well you can't disagree with Tancredo's logic. After all he's right, Christie has about as muhc chance of winning the nomination as he does of ever seeing his own feet again. 

However I would like to extrapolate this conclusion out to include many of the GOP presidential wannabes.

I mean does ANYBODY really think we are going to see a Lindsey Graham at the top of the ticket?

Or a Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, or Donald Trump either?

No, if the Republican party really wants to demonstrate how serious they are about this election, they should all, as one, turn and ignore the clown car and give their support to the ultimate victor.

Hillary Clinton.

See what I did there?

In what may be the first time in American political history, Jeb Bush is asking donors to give him LESS money.

"Look I just want to swim in a pool of money piled this high. I'm not greedy."

Courtesy of the Washington Post: 

An unusual request has gone out to wealthy donors writing large checks to support former Florida governor Jeb Bush: Please don’t give more than $1 million right away. 

The requested limit, confirmed by multiple people familiar with the amount, may mark the first time that a presidential hopeful has sought to hold off supporters from contributing too much money. 

The move reflects concerns among Bush advisers that accepting massive sums from a handful of uber-rich supporters could fuel a perception that the former governor is in their debt. The effort is also driven by a desire to build as broad a pool of donors as possible among wealthier contributors. 

So even as Bush (R) is headlining a series of high-dollar events for a super PAC backing his bid, fundraisers have been instructed not to ask donors to give more than $1 million per person this quarter.

So Bush is concerned that taking more than a million dollars, might give people the impression that he is in these donor's debt?  But anything less than a million, means he owes them nothing?

Interesting thought process.

Look we all know who is going to be pulling Jebbie's strings, and it makes no difference if they give less than a million dollars or not.

Jeb Bush is a big business sycophant and he will jump through whatever flaming hoops they hold up for him.

Electing Jeb Bush guarantees a bad economy, ultra conservative Supreme Court appointees, and more likely than not another unnecessary war. 

And in order to stop him, and his truckloads of money, we need Hillary Clinton.

Like it, or not.

The most recent SarahPAC filings show a continued trend toward eventual bankruptcy. Update!

So the most recent SarahPac filings were posted the other day, and they continue to indicate a trend toward reduced support and deficit spending on the part of the once powerful PAC.

In a nutshell:

Total Receipts   $2,790,849 

Total Spent   $3,115,232 

Begin Cash on Hand   $1,149,939 

End Cash on Hand   $825,556 

Debts   $0 

Date of last report   December 31, 2014

As you can see the PAC is still taking in far less than it is spending, which I think puts that whole "Sarah Palin is a fiscal conservative" argument to rest.

I did a little wading through the filings and it appears that the same players are still present as in years past.

There does seem to be some change in the numbers with consultants earning more than was spent on "postage" this time around. (Though important to keep in mind that this only covers the time between November 25 and December 31st.)

For instance the PAC paid Consultants around $60,000 in this time period.

However it only paid $15,000 for "postage." (It should be noted that this does not include the $2,193.95 they spent on Christmas cards.)

The PAC also spent $453.37 on pins. And I have no idea what that means.

If you are looking for the biggest waste of resource ever that might be the $7,000 the PAC paid for speechwriters. Considering how Palin's speeches are received it seems that somebody is being robbed blind here.

$6000 went to Aries Petra Consultants which is really RAM, and $1,000 went to Jessica Gavora.

You can compare this filing to the one back in April, and see that Palin is essentially hemorrhaging money faster than her supporters can open a vein and refill her coffers.

At this rate SarahPAC may be history by 2017. If not before.

Yeah I know, it breaks my heart too.

Update: Somebody pointed out that Open Secrets was combining 2013 numbers and 2014 numbers, which is true.

So for the record in 2014 SarahPAC brought in $1,623,039 give or take a dollar or three.

And spent $1,904,773 give or take a dollar or three.

You can check the numbers yourself here.  (If there are any accountants in the house feel free to weigh in.)

Okay calm down everybody the new 2015 SarahPAC membership cards are finally in. I knew you were worried.

Oh God they're so..so...plain and uninspiring. Just like Palin herself.

Perfect!

Oh and there's also a letter from Tim Crawford the treasurer:  

Dear [DONOR], 

On behalf of Governor Sarah Palin, I am pleased to present you with your personal “2015 SarahPAC Membership Card.” 

As you take hold of your card, let me just say once again how grateful Gov. Palin and our entire SarahPAC team are for your faithfulness and generosity – we couldn’t do it without you! 

With your support and Gov. Palin’s leadership, the SarahPAC team once again made a big difference in 2014, playing a critical role in helping elect several key conservatives heading to Washington! 

As we now work to hold this new Repub1ican majority accountable… 

… and as we head into this next election cycle when America will elect a new President and control of Congress will again be at stake… 

… and as Gov. Palin considers whether her future includes another run for political office… 

… I need to know if Gov. Palin and SarahPAC can continue to count on your support in 2015. 

Or put another way, [DONOR], I need to know if you are are still on board “Team Sarah.” Will you continue to support Gov. Palin and SarahPAC as she weighs her political future and continues providing critical assistance to conservative candidates? 

Can I count on you today to renew your support for 2015 by making an immediate contribution of $100, $150, $200 or even more today? Every single dollar will make a difference for Gov. Palin and SarahPAC! 

Sincere1y, 

Tim Crawford 

Treasurer, Sarah Palin’s “SarahPAC” 

P.S. [DONOR], thank you again for your amazing support for Gov. Palin. I hope you enjoy your 2015 SarahPAC Membership Card!

Yes remember how big Sarah Palin's impact was on the 2014 elections, in that she did not have one?

Does anybody else detect that aroma of desperation? Or is that just me?

I look forward to seeing the newest SarahPAC filings when they come out. Somehow I imagine that they will contain the lowest contributions yet.

P.S. By the way yes I realize that the person who wrote this used the number "1" several times in the place of the letter "l." I don't know why that was unless they were just a horrible typist, or it is some kind of secret code that only paint chip eaters can understand.

I think I will go with the first one.

P.P.S. I should also let you know that the link at the top goes to the website US for Palin. So click it at your own risk.

Political Earthquake PAC purchases digital billboards in Iowa to promote Sarah Palin during the Freedom Summit.

Actually when she quit she left behind a 70% debt-to-GP-ratio in Alaska. Nothing responsible about that.

Courtesy of Sarah Palin's Earthquake Movement's Facebook page: 

The Political Earthquake leased our first digital billboard in Des Moines, Iowa. It is located on Fleur Dr. 600' North of Bell St. a major thoroughfare connecting the Des Moines Int. Airport and Downtown. Our billboard will run during the Iowa Freedom Summit from Monday the 19th of January through Sunday the 25th. It will display three separate message each displayed for 8 seconds and all encouraging folks to join us and support Sarah Palin to run in 2016. If you happen to be in the area we would love to see photos or read any local news coverage of our efforts.

Seriously?

 Well it looks like this bizarre group of people are willing to flush their money down the toilet in homage to Miss Moosepoop herself, Sarah Palin.

By who?

Above are the three versions of the sign that will be on display in Des Moines from Monday the 19th until Sunday the 25th.

I have little doubt that by then the Iowans will have had plenty of time to laugh out loud at them, and the morons ignorant enough to have paid for them.

At this point anybody who can still convince themselves that Sarah Palin would ever seriously run for President, needs to immediately check themselves into the nearest mental health facility before they hurt themselves.

Sarah Palin for President in 2016? Who are these people?

Man was that painful to watch.

Well they do both wear wigs I guess.

Okay so there is apparently a renewed push by.....somebody for Palin to run in 2016.

It is endorsed by something called the PoliticalEarthquake.PAC.

This is how this PAC describes themselves: 

Sarah Palin’s Earthquake is a grassroots organization with members from all walks of life, fully committed to supporting Sarah Palin if she chooses to run for President of the United States in 2016. 

She is one voice willing to stand up and speak out, and one can become a million strong heard round the world. Never underestimate the power of the people! Our nation has come under attack, threatening the very core of what America stands for – “…life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Our time has come… but who is willing to fight for us? 

We believe there is such a one who espouses the values and principles we are desperately fighting to defend. Someone who truly understands what it means to be an American and one whose life has been devoted to this cause. We have found this individual…. we believe in this individual…. and we are willing to do whatever it takes to elect Governor Sarah Palin our Commander in Chief.

So as you can clearly see these people are out of their fucking minds. 

While I may, if pressured, be willing to entertain the possibility that Palin will run for some kind of office, most likely nowhere near Alaska, just to keep the money rolling into her coffers, there is NO way this woman would EVER subject herself to the kind of scrutiny that would come her way as a result of running for President of the United States.

People keep asking me how much longer this can go on. But since these people are impervious to common sense, family scandal, or the obvious truth that their idol is now hawking her rapidly deteriorating wares on reality cable shows and internet only fake TV channels then the answer depends on how long these elderly, mentally deficient people can manage to stave off the sweet embrace of death.

So what do you think, four or five more years perhaps?

Dark money in politics and the honesty of Senator Mark Begich.

Courtesy of TPM:

Republican dark money groups are outspending their Democratic counterparts by an incredible margin, according to data from the nonpartisan Sunlight Foundation. 

During this cycle, conservative groups that do not disclose their donors have spent more than $94 million, while liberal dark money groups have spent more than $28 million.

The data this cycle confirms Republican dominance of dark money spending. In the 2012 election cycle, about 80 percent of dark money spending backed Republican candidates.

Of course as we know there has been untold millions spent up here in Alaska in support of Dan Sullivan, hell anybody trying to watch a You Tube video, listen to the radio, or watch television can tell you that. 

And when asked about that Dan Sullivan ran away like somebody was trying to take his lunch money.

Now undoubtedly Mark Begich has received some money from outside groups, and some of those are certainly from shady PACs that don't want to disclose their donor list.

However Begich is not one to shy away from scrutiny as evidenced by the fact that he has voluntarily provided documentation as to how his campaign money is spent.

This from ABC News:  

Senate campaigns aren't required to tell us by Election Day--they submit spending reports to the Federal Election Commission on paper, a seemingly antiquated system that prevents reporters and the public from being able to dig effectively through their latest receipts and expenses. For most campaigns, sortable expense data is only available through June. Weeks or months later, we'll get a fuller picture. 

But Sen. Mark Begich, D-Alaska, apparently out of the goodness of his heart, has been filing his disclosures electronically since October 2013, giving us a window into how Senate campaigns are spending their millions of dollars these days. 

Since Oct. 1, 2013, Begich has spent $7.3 million, a middling total for campaigns. Alaska isn't the most expensive state in which a candidate can run, and it's outside the top 10 this election cycle for candidate spending, although, including outside money, it's the sixth most expensive of all 2014 Senate races, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Can anybody imagine Dan Sullivan being this transparent? Nope me either.

As if we needed another reason to support the only REAL Alaskan running for the Senate in 2014.

Alaskan voters angered about letters revealing voting records of friends and neighbors and threatening to reveal more before the election.

Billionaire Paul Singer, whose Right Wing organization is behind the mailings.

Courtesy of KTUU:  

A series of letters from a shadowy group is telling Alaskans’ friends and neighbors whether they voted in previous elections -- and threatening to release their voting records in the Nov. 4 general elections. 

In letters photographed by Channel 2 viewers who received them, the Alaska State Voter Program lists 10 friends and neighbors, along with their home addresses and whether -- but not how -- they voted in the 2008, 2010 and 2012 elections. At least one person reported subsequently receiving an email from the group containing the text of the mailed letter. 

An introduction in the letters rhetorically asks why people don’t vote, then poses the group’s solution to the issue. The language is mirrored on the group's website, which allows people to generate a list similar to those in the letters by entering their name and mailing address or their Facebook account. 

“This year, we’re taking a new approach,” ASVP members wrote. “We’re sending this mailing to you, your friends, your neighbors, your colleagues at work, and your community members to publicize who does and does not vote.” 

Channel 2 viewers have uniformly condemned the Alaska mailings as an unwarranted intrusion on their privacy, with one saying a friend who received a copy of the letter at his Wasilla home did not respond well. 

“He and his wife are furious because the letter lists names and addresses of their neighbors and what years they voted -- which means their names are probably on a letter in other people's households,” the viewer wrote. “These types of shaming and bullying tactics are unacceptable and they cross the line.” 

A second viewer pointed out the possibility of information from the letters enabling criminal activity. 

“We recently had ID theft and the last thing we want to publicize is where we live,” the viewer wrote. “I wonder how many people are outraged like us.” 

A third viewer said the mailings represent a threat to Alaska-based service members’ operational and personal security. 

“How is this even okay to send out people’s names and addresses?” the viewer wrote. “What about the military families in this state who are trying to maintain proper OPSEC and PERSEC, who just had their names and addresses sent out to random other people?”

This Alaska State Voter Program attempts to camouflage itself as a local political outfit, even using some of our beautiful scenery on its website, but it is certainly NOT an Alaskan organization.

And by the way when they say "this year we're taking a new approach" that is bullshit as this seems to be the first year they have even been in existence. In fact they really don't seem to even exist today.

Gee I wonder where they came from, and who is paying for all of this?

Well KTUU has some of those answers: 

While ASVP isn’t registered with the Alaska Public Offices Commission according to Fenumiai, she said the interstate nature of its PAC would leave it covered by the Federal Election Commission. State officials have been unable to uncover much more about the nature and origins of the group, she said. 

An attribution at the bottom of the letters says they are paid for by the Opportunity Alliance PAC, a political action committee associated with the Republican-affiliated American Opportunity Alliance. The alliance’s website doesn’t list a page for Alaska, but includes links to an attack ad against U.S. Senate incumbent Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), as well as endorsements of Republicans Joni Ernst in an Iowa U.S. Senate race and Martha McSally for an Arizona U.S. House seat. 

Apparently the Opportunity Alliance PAC is run by billionaire Paul Singer who it just so happens donate $600,000 to Dan Sullivan's campaign last year.

Gee an out of state PAC supporting the carpetbagger trying to steal an Senate seat in Alaska? You could have knocked me over with a feather.

PAC supporting Hillary Clinton's candidacy raises two million in third quarter. Has raised over ten million since formation in 2013.

Courtesy of MSNBC:  

Ready for Hillary, the quasi-official Clinton shadow campaign PAC, took in more than $2 million in the third quarter of the year, according to the group. That’s slightly less than the previous quarter as the group winds down its activities in anticipation of an official Clinton campaign launch. 

The group has raised more than $10.25 million since it formed in early 2013, and raked in $2.5 million in the previous quarter. 

Continuing to expand its grassroots fundraising base, Ready for Hillary brought more than 21,000 new donors into the fold over the past three months. Of its more than 38,000 contributions during the quarter, 98% were for less than $100. The average contribution was $52.

I find that to be a rather incredible level of grassroots support for a candidate who has yet to even commit to a run in 2016.

If free speech and money really were the same thing, like the Republicans seem to want us to believe, then there would be an almost deafening roar of "Hillary in 2016" drowning out all of the other political talk right now.

By the way, and I know this is not fair, but compare the information above with the last quarter report from the PAC supporting the best known female politician from that other party.

(I know, I'm a stinker.)

Open Secrets notices that SarahPAC only gave 5.5% of their donations to actual candidates. Also mentions a certain drunken brawl.

Wait, stop looking so closely.

Courtesy of Open Secrets:

The involvement of immediate family members in a drunken brawl does little to boost one’s political prospects. (Over a month later and the brawl is still getting attention in all kinds of unexpected places.)

On a different level, the same might be said of a stingy leadership PAC. 

Former vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin’s SarahPAC continued to perform underwhelmingly as a source of funds for other candidates in 2014′s third quarter, a report filed with the FEC this week showed. Out of $1.4 million the PAC had available in the third quarter — $978,000 sitting in the bank at the beginning of the July 1-Sept. 30 period, plus another more than $433,000 raised during that time — SarahPAC managed to donate just $45,000 to fellow Republicans running in the midterms. That’s a little more than 3 percent. 

For the two-year 2014 cycle, the former Alaska governor’s PAC, a vehicle that helps her stay in the game amid talk that she may run in the 2016 presidential contest, has raised $2.5 million on top of more than $1.1 million that was in the bank at the start of the cycle. It has spent $2.7 million, with about $150,000 — or 5.5 percent — going to candidates. 

That’s right about on par with the PAC’s parsimoniousness in 2012. Of the 417 leadership PACs that made at least one contribution in that cycle, SarahPAC was one of only 19 to give less than 10 percent of its total expenditures to candidates, other PACs or party committees. And it was one of only three of those spending more than $1 million to do so — the others being Rep. Ron Paul‘s (R-Texas) Liberty PAC and Sen. Marco Rubio‘s (R-Fla.) Reclaim America PAC.

I have to say that I love the fact that there are more journalists taking note of the fact that SarahPAC is simply a giant slush fund for Palin and her brood of out of work Wasilla-billies. 

It is of course also worth noting that not only does the PAC constantly spend more than it takes in, it is also bringing in thousands of dollars less each quarter.

It can only be a matter of time before Palin has to lower her standards to get a real job that does not involve standing in front of a green screen, making videos for her handful of subscribers, or flying across the country endorse a candidate or give a speech concerning one of the many things she pretends to be for attention.

Rick Perry starts selling t-shirts with his mugshot on them to raise money.

Courtesy of Newsmax:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, facing abuse-of-power charges, started selling T-shirts featuring his mug shot to raise money for his political committee. 

The shirts, which went on sale yesterday, show the Texas Republican's picture with "WANTED" stamped above it and "FOR SECURING THE BORDER AND DEFEATING DEMOCRATS" underneath. 

On the back, there’s a picture of Travis County, Texas, District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg's mug shot, with the word "GUILTY" stamped above it. 

And yes these shirts are available for RickPAC Rick Perry's very own political action committee.

Methinks that somebody is simply not taking this indictment as seriously as they should.

Newly released court documents show that Wisconsin Governor, and GOP rising star, Scott Walker may be in very, very hot water.

Courtesy of the AP: 

Newly released court documents include excerpts from emails showing that Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's recall election campaign team told him to instruct donors to give to a key conservative group that would run ads for Walker and distribute money to other conservative groups backing him. 

The documents released Friday by a federal appeals court also show that prosecutors believe Walker personally solicited donations for conservative group Wisconsin Club for Growth to get around campaign finance limits and disclosure requirements as he fended off the recall attempt in 2012. 

Aides told Walker to tell donors that they could make unlimited donations to Wisconsin Club for Growth without having the gifts publicly disclosed. Wisconsin Club for Growth then funneled the money to other conservative groups that advertised on Walker's behalf. 

"As the Governor discussed ... he wants all the issue advocacy efforts run thru one group to ensure correct messaging," Walker fundraiser Kate Doner wrote to campaign adviser R.J. Johnson in April 2011, a little more than a year before the recall election. "We had some past problems with multiple groups doing work on 'behalf' of Gov. Walker and it caused some issues ... the Governor is encouraging all to invest in the Wisconsin Club for Growth." 

It's not clear whether Walker followed the instructions from his team. But the documents say millions of dollars later moved from donors he was set to speak with to Wisconsin Club for Growth, which in turn funded groups backing Walker in the recall election.

The documents are part of a secret investigation into whether Walker illegally coordinated with conservative groups and fundraisers in the run up to the 2012 recall election.

According to these documents it appears that he did just that.

I think my new favorite song when reporting on the Republican party is this one by Queen.

SarahPAC identified as one of five prominent Tea Party ponzi schemes.

Uh oh!

Courtesy of the Daily Beast:  

This article is not a piece of commentary about beliefs or ideologies. Airing concerns openly can be constructive, civil debate can be productive, and incumbency shouldn’t equate to job security. 

This article is about the hijacking of a movement that started in 2009 by the modern equivalent of the “Old West Snake Oil Salesman.” Slick, fast-talking, and capable of whipping a crowd into a frenzy, they travel from town to town peddling their promises of “change.’ 

The problem is evidence indicates some Tea Party groups care far less about your ideals and far more about your money—taking it and making it their own. They’re an ideological Ponzi scheme; they use donations to generate more donations, by creating sensationalistic ad campaigns to persuade donors they’re getting value, and to scare or guilt them, and new donors, into sending more donations. 

Here are five very recognizable organizations that spend vastly more on fundraising efforts than on support for any candidate.

Actually I would like to disagree that the majority of the money for SarahPAC is spent on "fundraising." I think that is just the excuse they use for spending so much on "postage."

I think the vast amount of the donations goes right into Palin's pocket.

The charts, above and below, were created using actual values from the FEC financial reports filed by the Tea Party Leadership Fund, Tea Party Patriots, Madison Project, Sarah Palin’s PAC, and the Tea Party Express; from January 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014. To be clear, these numbers are exactly what each organization reported without manipulation or modification.

Gee and still that was not enough, and Palin had to turn to hillbilly reality shows on cable outlets nobody can find, poorly attended speeches, and a subscription only internet TV channel that is run so shabbily that now all of its content is available free on YouTube.

The Daily Beast then goes on to point out the scam that is Sarah PAC:Total receipts were $2,068,666, with expenses of $2,120,019 and $106,000 benefiting candidates. That’s 95 percent on expenses and 5 percent to candidates. With just a measly one-hundred grand in candidate support, Sarah Palin’s PAC basically has taken a shotgun approach by doling out $5,000 cash contributions to eight senatorial candidates, and a half-dozen House candidates, most of which are notable for their primary losses.

Oh man you just know THIS is going to piss in a certain somebody's Cheerios today. 

I can hardly wait for the response.

Hmmm, I wonder if it will only be available with a subscription?

More outside money being spent in Alaska than anyplace else. They are trying to buy OUR election.

Senator Mark Begich, in the GOP cross hairs.

Courtesy of The New York Times: 

A big part of being an Alaskan is harboring a suspicion of all things Lower 48. It’s an inclination that runs so deep that locals have a proper noun to describe everywhere else — Outside. 

So, naturally, there is quite a bit of alarm here over the state’s newest political distinction. Alaska has unwillingly become a giant receptacle for money from “super PACs” and other out-of-state groups fighting over control of the United States Senate. 

In no other state have so many ads about a Senate race run so far; in no place else has more money been spent to book commercial time through Election Day. More than $20 million worth of ads have been reserved so far — the bulk of the money coming from Washington-based outfits like Karl Rove’s American Crossroads, which wants to elect a Republican, and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which is defending Senator Mark Begich, one of the most targeted first-term Democrats. 

Five months before the November election, that sum would be extraordinary in any state. It is all the more staggering considering it will be spent to reach only about 490,000 registered voters.

Personally I would not categorize the spending by  Democratic Senatorial Campaign in the same way I would the Crossroads and Koc brother money.

After all the Democrats are spending in response to the PAC money flooding out airwaves and to protect one of their own.

I this this reporter, Jeremy Peters, has really hit it on the head when he describes the suspicion with which Alaskans view outside money and influence.

Simply put, we don;t like that shit!

We may be quirky and a little crazy, but we are far more likely to trust a whack-a-doodle from Seward than some uptight suit from the lower 48.

I think that all Begich has to do is continue reminding people Dan Sullivan's ties to outside influences, and remind Alaskans of his similarities to our most famous carpetbagger John Lindauer and he should have little trouble hanging onto his seat.

Head of Texas Republican PAC in support of Greg Abbott, says they don't need the Lilly Ledbetter Act to get equal pay in this country, because "women are extremely busy." Wait, what?

Courtesy of HuffPo:  

The head of RedState Women, a new Republican PAC in Texas aimed at rallying women voters for GOP gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott, got a little tripped up on Sunday trying to explain the GOP's alternatives to the equal pay laws they oppose. 

Cari Christman, executive director of the PAC, told WFAA that Republicans oppose the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act because "women want real-world solutions to this problem, not more rhetoric." The law, signed by President Barack Obama in 2009, allows women to file a claim against pay discrimination when she discovers it, not a limited amount of time after the unequal pay began. 

When asked what her proposed solution to the gender pay gap might look like, she began repeating the point that women are "busy." 

"If you look at it, women are extremely busy," she said. "We lead busy lives, whether working professionally, whether working from home, and times are extremely busy. It's a busy cycle for women, and we've got a lot to juggle. So when we look at this issue we think, what's practical? And we want more access to jobs. We want to be able to get a higher education degree at the same time we're working or raising a family."

Well that..uh...that makes..uh.....what just happened?

And since when does Sarah Palin wear a blonde wig?

I think Greg Abbott's new campaign slogan should be, "Vote Greg Abbott, the perfect candidate for those who just don't know WHAT the hell is going on."

P.S. Just in case you don't realize that the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is a whole lot more than simply "rhetoric."