As we continue our effort to keep you up-to-date on how money corrupts American government and politics, as well as other news of the day, we’re pleased to publish this daily digest compiled by BillMoyers.com’s John Light.
Major earthquake –> A powerful, 7.5-magnitude earthquake has hit South Asia, with an epicenter near Jarm, Afghanistan. Via: Al Jazeera.
That was quick –> Less than a week after The Washington Post began raising questions about what looked like illegal coordination between Donald Trump’s campaign and the main super PAC supporting his run, the super PAC decided to shut down. Matea Gold reports for WaPo. AND: Jenn Johnson in another article at WaPo: “Trump has asked the nine super PACs that appear to support his presidential campaign to stop raising money using his name, likeness and slogans and to return any donations they have already received. Trump then challenged his Republican and Democratic opponents to do the same and reject ‘dark money.'”
Here we go again –> The debt ceiling must be raised by Nov. 3 to prevent a default. “The risk that America will default on its debts is now higher than ever,” writes Paul Waldman at WaPo’s Plum Line blog. “Conservatives there are feeling emboldened because they just got rid of John Boehner, as they had wanted to do for so long. They feel strong and empowered, so naturally they believe that this is a battle they can win, even if they’ve lost before. And they’ve upped their demands.”
No more private prison cash –> Jorge Rivas at Fusion: “Hillary Clinton has agreed to stop accepting contributions from federally registered lobbyists and PACs for private prison companies, her campaign staff confirmed with Fusion early Friday morning. … The campaign has promised to donate any previous direct contributions from private prison lobbyists to charity.” The Clinton campaign had previously relied on lobbyists for private prison corporations as bundlers, and one major private prison company, Geo Group, donated to both Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush’s super PACs.
Pretty sweet deal –> The DNC announced this summer that it would lift its ban on special interest funding for the nominating convention. Now the committee is offering some goodies to lure in donors. Dierdre Fulton at Common Dreams writes that lobbyists and PACs who fund the convention this year “could see returns ranging from ‘preferred booking in a premiere hotel’ to a photo-op at the official convention podium to VIP access to ‘the official Host Committee celebration, featuring celebrities and other luminaries, live music, and catering by Philadelphia’s most recognized chefs.'”
Meanwhile –> The GOP will require a $150 fee for media who want to cover the Republican convention. “The reporters won’t have to shell out the cash at the door, but the indignation over this will run from the top down and, I suspect, set the tone for the manner in which the convention is covered,” writes William Rivers Pitt at TruthOut.
No need to fret –> Paul Ryan doesn’t want the fundraising that comes along with House speakership to infringe on his family time. But Republicans in tight races need not worry, write Jake Sherman and Anna Palmer at Politico, he’s expected to do very well for the party financially: “The national network he’s amassed as a vice presidential candidate and from coordinating the national party’s spending in presidential elections give him advantages that even the highly prolific John Boehner didn’t enjoy.” AND: David Sirota at International Business Times: “Paul Ryan Says Corporate Lobbyist Would Be Chief Of Staff If He Becomes House Speaker.”
Decoding money in politics –> New research forthcoming in the Journal of Politics finds that “lower contribution limits can lead either to more moderate legislatures or to more polarized legislatures. It all depends on what type of money is limited.” Michael Barber, the political scientist behind the study, explains at The Monkey Cage blog.
Lincoln, we hardly knew ye –> After a dud of a debate performance, Lincoln Chafee’s quit the race for Democratic nomination. Molly Ball at The Atlantic: “A few weeks ago, I joined him [Chafee] in New Hampshire in an attempt to figure out what, exactly, he thought he was doing—but the mystery only deepened.”
Justice is served –> Returning from an appearance on Face The Nation, Chris Christie got booted from an Amtrack “quiet car” for talking too loud on his cell phone. According to The Daily Beast’s Olivia Nuzzi, Christie may have repeatedly said, “this is frickin’ ridiculous” and “seriously?! seriously!?” but he may not have — reports differ.
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