Politicians since Theodore Roosevelt have fretted over big donors' impact on U.S. elections; a hundred years later, though, campaigns still cost money
The Supreme Court has struck down a provision of a federal campaign finance law that allowed opponents of wealthy candidates to exceed strict campaign spending limits.
Days after both men reversed course on major issues, the presidential campaigns of Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain spent much of Sunday's talk-show circuit working to ensure accusations of "flip-flopping" don't stick.
Sen. Barack Obama's decision to reject roughly $85 million in public financing -- as well as the strict spending limits that would accompany those funds -- did not come as a surprise to most political observers.
Sen. John McCain on Thursday accused Sen. Barack Obama of breaking a promise when the Democrat decided to forgo public financing in this fall's campaign.
Each month in 2008, CNN Student News will be "Talking Democracy" by introducing an election-year topic on the show and online. From caucuses to conventions and primaries to polls, CNN Student News will be breaking down these election-year concepts for students and teachers.
The conviction of Chicago businessman Antoin "Tony" Rezko on several charges continues to raise issues in the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama
As November draws nearer, expect a barrage of pre-recorded phone calls and other pleas from presidential hopefuls who want your vote - and your financial support.
Foreign dignitaries arriving to honor the Jewish State on its anniversary are greeted by a prime minister facing new legal troubles
With the 2008 race for the White House whittled down to a three-person contest, Wall Street is hedging its bets in what is almost certain to be the most expensive presidential race in history.
Politicians since Theodore Roosevelt have fretted over big donors' impact on U.S. elections; a hundred years later, though, campaigns still cost money
The Supreme Court has struck down a provision of a federal campaign finance law that allowed opponents of wealthy candidates to exceed strict campaign spending limits.
Days after both men reversed course on major issues, the presidential campaigns of Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain spent much of Sunday's talk-show circuit working to ensure accusations of "flip-flopping" don't stick.
Sen. Barack Obama's decision to reject roughly $85 million in public financing -- as well as the strict spending limits that would accompany those funds -- did not come as a surprise to most political observers.
Sen. John McCain on Thursday accused Sen. Barack Obama of breaking a promise when the Democrat decided to forgo public financing in this fall's campaign.
Each month in 2008, CNN Student News will be "Talking Democracy" by introducing an election-year topic on the show and online. From caucuses to conventions and primaries to polls, CNN Student News will be breaking down these election-year concepts for students and teachers.
The conviction of Chicago businessman Antoin "Tony" Rezko on several charges continues to raise issues in the presidential campaign of Sen. Barack Obama
As November draws nearer, expect a barrage of pre-recorded phone calls and other pleas from presidential hopefuls who want your vote - and your financial support.
Foreign dignitaries arriving to honor the Jewish State on its anniversary are greeted by a prime minister facing new legal troubles
With the 2008 race for the White House whittled down to a three-person contest, Wall Street is hedging its bets in what is almost certain to be the most expensive presidential race in history.
The Supreme Court on Tuesday debated whether a provision of federal election law that allows opponents of certain self-financed candidates to exceed campaign spending limits unfairly punishes those who self-finance.
A Utah disposal company seeking federal permission to import more than 20,000 tons of nuclear waste from Italy has raised its campaign contributions to lawmakers
The Democratic Party on Monday filed a lawsuit against the Federal Elections Commission seeking to force the group to investigate whether Sen. John McCain has violated federal spending limits for his primary campaign.
Use this information to teach your students about campaign finance.
Students will learn about campaign finance and campaign finance reform.
Sen. Barack Obama raised more than $40 million from more than 442,000 donors in March, his presidential campaign announced Thursday.
Puerto Rican Gov. Anibal Acevedo Vila and 12 associates face criminal charges related to the financing of three of Acevedo's campaigns, according to a federal indictment unsealed Thursday.
The Supreme Court has rejected a conservative group's legal fight to air commercials promoting a movie critical of Sen. Hillary Clinton.
An accounting scandal at the Republican Party's House campaign organization has federal agents investigating what happened to hundreds of thousands of dollars and could affect several congressional campaigns, party officials said Thursday.
Sen. Barack Obama raised $55 million in February, his campaign reported Thursday, setting a record for political fundraising in one month.
Sen. John McCain's campaign said the Republican presidential hopeful has the "constitutional right" to opt out of the public election funds program.
Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean accused Republican presidential front-runner John McCain of trying to skirt campaign finance laws Sunday by trying to opt out of public financing for his primary campaign.
The Senate Ethics Committee issued a "letter of admonition" to Sen. Larry Craig on Wednesday in connection with his arrest in a Minneapolis airport sex sting last year.
One of the most competitive presidential elections in years is also on track to become the most expensive election ever, according to OpenSecrets.org, the web site of the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics.
Indicted real estate developer and political fundraiser Tony Rezko, whose links to Sen. Barack Obama have brought his name into the national spotlight, was arrested Monday morning, an FBI spokesman said.
Lawyers for Sen. Larry Craig asked a Minnesota appeals court Tuesday to allow him to withdraw his guilty plea stemming from his June arrest in a public bathroom sex sting, citing a "grave procedural flaw."
New York Sen. Hillary Clinton raised a record "over $100 million" for her Democratic presidential bid, her campaign reported.
Just a couple of weeks ago, Sen. Hillary Clinton said she wasn't interested in attacking her opponents -- she was interested in "tackling the problems of America."
Is that poor restaurant worker who gave $1,000 to the campaign a real donor, or an illegal proxy? That's the question every campaign is trying to figure out how to answer
A new campaign finance report filed with the Senate shows Sen. Larry Craig spent about $23,000 in campaign money on lawyers in his ethics investigation.
Two days after hinting he wanted to try for the White House, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich decided he would not run for president, his spokesman said Saturday.
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards is expected to name two activists opposed to the giant retailer Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to senior posts on his campaign staff, a campaign official said Thursday.
The court's ruling puts a chink in campaign finance law, but it also shows the ideological limits of the Roberts Court
The Supreme Court's reversal of federal limits on independent political advertising has the potential to add "another X factor" to an already-unpredictable 2008 presidential race, one campaign finance analyst said Monday.
The Supreme Court on Monday swept aside part of a campaign finance law dealing with "issue ads."
A majority of the Supreme Court's conservative bench appeared ready Wednesday to turn aside part of a sweeping campaign finance reform law with important implications for the upcoming presidential election
Why is the McCain campaign like a balky computer? When you get lots of error messages, you know it's time to reboot.
Jumping into a heated free-speech dispute a year before the presidential primaries, the Supreme Court on Friday accepted a pair of appeals over a sweeping campaign-finance reform law that limits "issue ads."
The Supreme Court on Monday struck down Vermont's strict limits on state campaign spending limits, finding the laws unfairly violate the free speech rights of candidates to raise money and publicize their views.
Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards' 2004 presidential campaign and a donor were fined Thursday for soliciting and accepting illegal contributions.
Democrats who love to play the stock market now have a chance to really toe the party line.
Transparency is a big trend these days in corporate America.
Republican Sen. John McCain, of Arizona, has returned $20,000 in political contributions from a powerful Texas family that is under investigation for possible unlawful use of offshore tax shelters.
The crusade to win a greater share of the operating system market away from Microsoft's Windows has long fired up the hearts of the Mac and Linux faithful. But popularity breeds contempt - from hackers. A new study of "malware" - viruses, worms, and other software nasties - released Friday by Moscow-based Kaspersky Lab shows a doubling in the number of viruses and worms targeting Linux from 2004 to 2005. The trend is worth watching, says Linux Pipeline, but must be put in context. There were only 863 cases of Linux attacks last year, while Symantec found 11,000 viruses and worms in Windows. And Apple's Mac? It got off easy in the Kaspersky report, but last week brought news of vulnerabilities in OS X. Additionally, independent security researcher Tom Ferris posted to his blog a series of "serious" Mac security breaches that he recently discovered.
"Compare and contrast," read the directions for essay exams in the old college blue books. Compare and contrast the trials of Zacarias Moussaoui and Jeffrey Skilling.
Embattled Rep. Tom DeLay said Tuesday he's dropping his bid for re-election, while insisting he's never acted improperly.
Yes, the Jack Abramoff scandal is a cancer eating away at the heart of Washington, fresh proof of the Beltway's culture of corruption, etc., etc. But for business, this tawdry episode is a reminder of something that gets too little notice: A company's return on lobbying and campaign contributions--let's call it return on political investment, or ROPI--is astronomically higher than any real investment it can make. These remarkable returns, not any inherent venality, explain why the pseudo-reforms likely to come in Abramoff's wake will do nothing to stop the meltdowns from recurring.
When does good old-fashioned lobbying become bribery? That's the question Congress and business leaders alike find themselves grappling with since the fall of Jack Abramoff, Washington's most notor...
House Speaker Dennis Hastert became the latest lawmaker to dump campaign contributions from clients of high-flying lobbyist Jack Abramoff, giving about $70,000 to charity Tuesday.
How far will it go? That's what many nervous officials in Washington are wondering as they brace for what is showing signs of becoming the biggest influence-peddling scandal in decades. An investigation that began nearly two years ago into whether lobbyist Jack Abramoff and his associate Michael Scanlon bilked six Indian tribes out of $80 million now looks as though it could touch dozens of lawmakers, their current and former staff members and Bush Administration officials. The Justice Department is preparing to test whether accepting lawfully reported campaign contributions may constitute corruption, subjecting Washington politicians to an entirely new standard. Even those who are not in legal jeopardy over their dealings with Abramoff and Scanlon could face embarrassing questions at home. All of which is about the last thing the Republicans who control Congress wanted to hear as they move into what is an already hostile political climate for next year's midterm elections. "There's certainly a sense of f
Supreme Court nominee John G. Roberts has donated to the political campaigns of several Republican candidates, including one senator who will vote on Roberts' appointment to the high court.
Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean is defending remarks he made that enraged Republican leaders this week.
Former Philadelphia city treasurer Corey Kemp was convicted of fraud and conspiracy Monday for taking tens of thousands of dollars in gifts and cash from people seeking city contracts, said assistant U.S. Attorney Rich Manieri.
Google Inc. employees took out their wallets and showed overwhelming support for the Democratic Party last year, according to a report Monday in USA Today.
So far this election season, financial services companies and their employees have doled out some $250 million in campaign contributions, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. That's mor...
House ethics committee leaders say the complaint that led to a rebuke of Republican leader Tom DeLay in October was filled with exaggerations. They warned lawmakers of possible discipline if it happens again.
Check out the links below to hot political stories around the country this morning.
In addition to choosing a U.S. president, the 2004 election is a referendum on the success of the McCain-Feingold reforms, otherwise known as the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Act of 2002.
Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of the largest group of television stations in the nation, plans to air a documentary that accuses Sen. John Kerry of betraying American prisoners during the Vietnam War, a newspaper reported Monday.
New Jersey real estate developer and gubernatorial fund-raiser Charles Kushner -- who was charged last month with conspiracy, obstruction of justice and interstate promotion of prostitution -- is expected to plead guilty Wednesday, an assistant to the presiding federal judge told CNN.
The 2004 Democratic National Convention that begins on Monday, as well as the Republican National Convention in August, will be brought to you by the following corporate sponsors...
A top Democratic donor is accused of entrapping his brother-in-law -- and sending his sister the tape
Boston worked hard to get the Democratic convention. And the nominee -- a senator from Massachusetts -- was threatening to spoil it.
As this issue went to press, President Bush was hosting 455 elite fundraisers at ritzy Reynolds Plantation, a Georgia resort, to celebrate the $170 million that's been raised for his campaign. That...
You look at your federal income tax return and you ponder that box marked "Presidential Election Campaign."
John Kerry has hired an Internet-savvy Democrat to run his presidential campaign's online communications, a move that raises new questions about the link between his campaign and the independent groups that run TV ads on his behalf.
The Democratic Party and its all-but-official nominee for the White House announced Friday that they have broken fund-raising records in recent months, helping stock the barrels for the campaign to oust President Bush.
For the price of a first-class airplane ticket, a U.S. president can practically turn Air Force One into his own private re-election express.
Check out the links below to hot political stories around the country this morning.
Political ad spending has ignited a controversy over whether some groups are circumventing the spirit -- if not the letter -- of new campaign finance laws.
The Republican National Committee is warning television stations across the country not to run ads from the MoveOn.org Voter Fund that criticize President Bush, charging that the left-leaning political group is paying for them with money raised in violation of the new campaign-finance law.
GEORGE BUSH
This election year, federal candidates are standing by their ads in a way they never have before.
The fourth floor of the building directly across the street from the AFL-CIO headquarters in Washington looks abandoned. No receptionist greets visitors. The hallway lights aren't turned on. Most ...
George Soros owns no private plane, no Caribbean island, no yacht, no ranch in the West, no collection of Old Masters. When he travels to Budapest, the city where he was born and survived the Nazi ...
To hear the hype about the new campaign-finance law, you'd think that advocates for small business would be miserable. With big money banished from politics, interest groups will have to turn elsew...
Dear FORTUNE Readers: Here's some of the latest buzz from D.C.:
Warren Buffett started life as a Republican. He all but inherited the preference from his father, a four-term Republican Congressman from Nebraska. Buffett was so zealous that he was president of t...
Larry Lindsey is a former vice chairman of the Federal Reserve Board and the top economic advisor to Texas governor George W. Bush. But because of arcane campaign-finance rules, he has been reduced...
Vice President Al Gore's visit to a Buddhist temple near Los Angeles in 1996 is the very symbol of campaign-finance chicanery, particularly illegal contributions from Asia. Gore tried to distance h...
Most of the time the connection between money and politics is subtle. Sometimes it's not. Take the case of Ron Kaufman, a former political director of the Bush White House who's now a lobbyist. In ...
Hey, tycoon. Want to look like a hotshot raising money for your favorite political candidate, without all the mess and bother? Then hire your own political fundraiser. Movie moguls David Geffen, St...
George W. Bush collected $2.4 million from his maiden presidential mailing, an astounding amount for an initial request. A San Francisco psychiatrist raised $60,000 for Bill Bradley by making phone...
This has been a weird year for Washington legislation. Bills that should have been surefire failed, including ones designed to reduce teen smoking and improve the service of HMOs. Other measures th...
Any Democrat running for President needs to be Terry McAuliffe's best friend. Vice President Al Gore flew through a snowstorm last year to attend McAuliffe's 40th birthday party. On the grip-'n'-gr...
Ordinary Americans are prohibited from climbing Mount Rushmore, where the faces of four great Presidents are carved in granite. But this September, just before the Senate began debating campaign fi...
Jerry Kohlberg is accustomed to being a pioneer and a pariah. As an investment banker at Bear Stearns in the 1960s, he invented the leveraged buyout and with it became one of the richest men in Ame...
Some 51 years ago, while the public was preoccupied with winning World War II, Congress passed a seemingly benign law giving insurers one of the sweetest deals in U.S. financial history. Instead of...
EXCLUSIVE
Money alone won't buy the Texas billionaire the presidency. ''If Ross Perot's message were the same as George Bush's,'' says GOP political analyst Kevin Phillips, ''his money would hang him.'' But ...
EVEN BEFORE Miami model Donna Rice -- and how she spent the night of May 1 -- made headlines, Gary Hart's presidential campaign was in trouble. Though he led the Democratic polls, Hart lagged behin...
THE PRESIDENTIAL campaign season has begun, and the Democratic hopefuls are descending on Wall Street. Over the past few months, Senator Joseph Biden, ex- Senator Gary Hart, ex-governor Bruce Babbi...
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