Wisconsin Club for Growth's allegations that prosecutors in the John Doe campaign finance probe have engaged in politically-motivated selective targeting don't stand up to even limited scrutiny.
Wisconsin could become the latest state to narrow access to the courts for asbestos victims in a bill pushed by ALEC and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
New court filings confirm that Wisconsin's John Doe campaign finance investigation hinges on how state election law treats "issue ad" groups coordinating with political campaigns, shedding new light on a Republican effort to quietly change the law in advance of Governor Scott Walker's reelection campaign.
Millions of U.S. citizens have voiced their opposition to the Keystone XL (KXL) pipeline in recent months, with more than 2 million public comments opposing the project hand delivered to the State Department last week. At the same time, hundreds of state legislators have been lining up in favor of KXL, seemingly just as passionate and as heartfelt as those opposed to the project. But many legislators have been tasked with promoting the project by oil industry lobbyists who provide them with model bills, talking points and draft op-eds.
The Wisconsin Senate is poised to vote today on a number of bills that would restrict access to the ballot and increase the influence of lobbyists in the state, despite the strong objections of grassroots and voting rights groups.
A review of legislative voting records by a University of Wisconsin professor demonstrates that many Wisconsin legislators are taking cues from the ALEC playbook, which he says represents "the loss of citizen voice in the legislature and policymaking."
A proposed bill that would keep the public in the dark about the sources of money in Wisconsin elections could also make it easier for dark money groups to coordinate with candidates.
When the Grocery Manufacturers Association was sued for not disclosing the donors behind its heavyweight contribution to stop the Washington State ballot initiative to label genetically engineered foods in 2013, the public learned a few interesting things about its funding and plans.
An internal ALEC document provided to the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD), shows that a Peabody Energy lobbyist provided ALEC legislators with a presentation on how to get more cash from corporations like Peabody to attend ALEC conferences. Peabody, a long time member of ALEC, is a frequent presenter at ALEC events and sponsor of several items of ALEC “model” legislation in recent years.
Thousands of pages of emails unsealed last week after a years-long investigation into former aides and associates of Scott Walker suggest that the current Wisconsin Governor and his staff misled the press about the first John Doe.
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