On Sunday, Madison's Monona Terrace hosted a rally for the Americans for Prosperity (AFP), a "grassroots" nonprofit founded and funded by billionaire industrialist David Koch.
MADISON -- With polls showing Wisconsin Senate candidates Tammy Baldwin and Tommy Thompson in a statistical dead heat, Obama swept into Madison, Wisconsin for an early morning rally on his final day of campaigning. The Obama campaign hopes to lock up the state and give a boost to Baldwin, as the candidates addressed a wildly enthusiastic crowd against a backdrop of blue skies and a white State Capitol building, that looks a heck of a lot like the U.S. Capitol. On the plane with Obama, one of his most effective bridges to those few remaining undecided voters, Bruce Springsteen.
"Dark money groups" that do not disclose their donors not only refuse to be transparent about where they get their money, in many cases they are not transparent about how they spend it. Dark money only accounts for about one-quarter of the over $1 billion in outside election spending reported to the Federal Election Commission, but because of gaps in reporting requirements, the actual percentages -- and the actual totals for outside spending -- are certainly much higher.
An order from Ohio's Secretary of State just four days before the election could jeopardize votes from individuals who cast provisional ballots in this swing state -- and possibly the results of the presidential election.
At the Mt. View gas station in Wausau, Wisconsin last week, some motorists were able to secure a gallon of gas for $1.84, thanks to a subsidy from David Koch's Americans for Prosperity. These astroturf publicity stunts have taken place at gas stations around the country in recent weeks as part of AFP's effort to mobilize votes for Mitt Romney by drawing attention to an alleged rise in gas prices since President Barack Obama took office. But since most experts attribute the rise in gas prices to long term trends and crude oil commodity speculation, AFP's hijinks only underscore the role of Wall Street speculators -- including the Kochs themselves -- in jacking up critical commodity prices on average Americans.
Reported spending by outside groups like Super PACs and dark money organizations has topped $1.11 billion, a 400 percent increase over total spending in 2008, according to a new analysis from Demos and U.S. PIRG.
Although the Einhorn Family Foundation admitted to being the "private family foundation" behind the controversial "Voter Fraud is a Felony!" billboards that recently appeared in neighborhoods of color in Milwaukee and two Ohio cities, news broke Wednesday they secured the funds for similar billboards in 2010 from the Milwaukee-based Bradley Foundation, a major funder of right-wing organizations that push the voter fraud myth.
Late in the evening on Halloween about 100 people gather around the campfire in "Bainport," Illinois, marking the 50th day of the encampment.
Democrats have a one-seat majority in the Wisconsin Senate after three Republicans lost seats in historic recall elections, but 16 seats are up for grabs in November, and with them the balance of power. In recent weeks, many have focused on the race between Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin and former governor Tommy Thompson, which may determine who holds the majority in the U.S. Senate, but the state Senate races are significant because many Wisconsinites are concerned about having a firewall against embattled Governor Scott Walker's 2013 legislative agenda.
Karl Rove's dark money group Crossroads GPS and Super PAC American Crossroads are spending $10.5 million on Senate ads in the final week of the election, which is likely the largest one week buy from any group this election cycle, Politico reports.
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