Gavin Aronsen

A quick look at the week that was in the world of political dark money...

the money shot

Quote of the week

"This is a nightmare for me."
—Former Rick Santorum booster Foster Friess, speaking to MoJo's Tim Murphy at the Republican National Convention in Tampa about the attention heaped on GOP megadonors. "It's too many things going on. I've got like four things to go to. It's just so frustrating," he continued. "I've had enough speeches!" Friess was just one of several deep-pocketed donors in Tampa. Miriam Adelson, wife of casino magnate Sheldon and a megadonor herself, gave a policy talk. Direct-marketing CEO Frank VanderSloot and his wife met privately with Karl Rove; hedge-fund manager Paul Singer also organized a private meeting with Rove. And David Koch "discussed saving America" with Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.).

attack ad of the week

American Bridge 21st Century, the liberal super-PAC launched by Media Matters founder David Brock, preempted Thursday night convention speeches by Mitt Romney and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) with a web ad pitting Rubio's words against Romney. "For almost all of history, almost everyone was poor," Rubio says. "Only a few people had power and wealth and prosperity." Then, as the video displays quotes critical of the low tax rate Romney has paid, Rubio continues: "And so the people with all the power, the big corporations, the multi-billonaires, they used their influence to get the rules written to their advantage."

stat of the week

$450,000: The amount that Florida developer Gary Morse has given to the pro-Romney super-PAC Restore Our Future. Morse owns the Cracker Bay, the unfortunately named yacht Romney bundlers partied on in Tampa. The ship flies the flag of the Cayman Islands, a notorious tax haven that Romney's not too eager to associate himself with. Other bundlers at the bash included Romney's national finance chairman Ron Weiser, Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell, and real estate developer Bob Pence, who's given Restore Our Future $350,000. (Unlike Obama, Romney has not disclosed the names of all his bundlers.)

chart of the week

Here's more evidence of the influence of dark money in the wake of Citizens United: Spending by outside groups has skyrocketed in the 2012 election, tripling the pace set in 2008. The Center for Responsive Politics has it charted:

more mojo dark-money coverage

• Barack Obama Comes Out in Favor of an anti-Citizens United Amendment on Reddit.
• "Cracker Bay," Team Romney's Big-Money Party Yacht: Choose where you party carefully, future presidential nominees.
• GOP Platform Calls for Nuking What's Left of McCain-Feingold Law: The platform will also oppose passage of new disclosure laws unmasking big donors to dark-money groups.
• Bizarre Super-PAC Targets Liberal Icon Raúl Grijalva...and Sheriff Joe: "I know I will make enemies but our country needs an ass-kicking," says the operative attacking Rep. Grijalva (D-Ariz.).

more must-reads

• Campaign finance reform groups try to shed light on the dark-money dealings at the RNC. Politico
• A look at how "big business is buying the election." The Nation
• The anti-tax Club for Growth's dark-money machine's latest victory: Helping Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) to a Senate primary win. Center for Public Integrity
• Rep. Flake is just the latest of several candidates who have won primaries despite being outspent. Politico
• The Sunlight Foundation has a new app for the iPhone and Android to help viewers debunk attack ads. New Scientist

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A quick look at the week that was in the world of political dark money...

the money shot

quote of the week

"Paul Ryan: Hustling for the 1 percent."
—Protest signs carried by AFL-CIO members outside a Las Vegas hotel where Romney's running mate attended a private "finance meeting" with Republican donors, including billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson. Adelson has poured $36 million into conservative super-PACs and has said he'll spend as much as $100 million to defeat President Obama. An attendee told the New York Times that he "saw no dialogue between" Ryan and Adelson.

attack ad of the week

A new dark-money group called the Special Operations Opsec Education Fund has released a 22-minute Swiftboat-esque video, "Dishonorable Disclosures" that features former special forces officers who accuse Barack Obama of leaking state secrets for political gain. The group is run in part by members of tea party groups and focuses primarily on Obama's handling of the Osama bin Laden raid. It repeats the claim that Obama has been too boastful about the raid. "Mr. President, you did not kill Osama bin Laden," a sneering former Navy SEAL says in the video. "America did."

stat of the week

Two: The number of 501(c)(4) nonprofits that, combined, have spent more than all super-PACs combined. ProPublica reports that Karl Rove's Crossroads GPS and the Koch-affiliated Americans for Prosperity have spent nearly $60 million on television ads, compared with $55.7 million spent by super-PACs, and $22.5 million spent by political parties.

race of the week

On Tuesday, former Wisconsin Governor Tommy Thompson won a hard-fought GOP Senate primary. The antitax super-PAC Club for Growth Action spent $1.7 million on ads in support of former Rep. Mark Neumann, who finished third. Including money targeting Democratic candidate Tammy Baldwin (like $850,000 from the US Chamber of Commerce), $4.5 million in outside money has been spent on the Wisconsin Senate race. Here's one of the ads Club for Growth ran against Thompson and challenger Eric Hovde:

more mojo dark-money coverage

• Can Harold Ickes Make It Rain for Obama?: The Democratic operative has cussed, clawed, and outsmarted his way through three dozen elections. His new fight: Stop Karl Rove and Co. from steamrolling the president.
• The Reformers Strike Back!: The conservatives behind Citizens United have lost some key fights lately. But another battle over corporate money in politics looms.
• Karl Rove's Dark Money Group Busted for Bogus Ad: Crossroads GPS says it proactively pulled the inaccurate ad. Well, not quite.

more must-reads

• Just four states and Washington, DC, are responsible for two-thirds of all super-PAC cash. MapLight
• Charles Koch explains why he "fights for economic freedom." Newsmax
• Gardener and pro-Obama super-PAC megadonor Amy Goldman talks politics. NPR
• A campaign finance reform group's infographic puts a superhero spin on super-PACs. Rootstrikers

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