July 6, 2012

This Week in Dark Money

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

the money shot

 

 

 

 


quote of the week

“If we had a Karl Rove of our own out there, we wouldn’t have had to do this.”
—An Obama campaign official speaking to the New York Times‘ Robert Draper, expressing frustration that the campaign had to buy TV airtime to respond to an attack ad from Karl Rove’s American Crossroads super-PAC. But as a Crossroads spokesman told Draper, “Outside money tends to flow toward the party out of power, and to causes to stop things rather than to promote things.”

 

stat of the week

$7.2 million: The amount pro-Mitt Romney super-PAC Restore Our Future says it plans to spend on ads in 11 swing states during the summer Olympics. The campaign gives Restore Our Future the opportunity to praise Romney for his role in managing the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The ad buy also would outpace the $6.5 million that the Obama campaign is planning during the games.

chart of the week

While super-PACs get a lot of attention, campaign fundraising is outpacing that of the primary super-PACs supporting President Obama and Mitt Romney. The Center for Responsive Politics breaks down various kinds of money supporting the presidential campaigns.

more mojo dark money coverage

• Is Rick Santorum’s New Dark-Money Group Breaking the Law?: Patriot Voices says its “first priority” is defeating Obama. Tax experts say that could land Santorum in hot water with the IRS.
• America’s Most Patriotic Super-PACs: In honor of the Fourth of July, a salute to seven groups that vaguely embody what makes us great.
• An Interactive Map of the Dark-Money Universe: Have you checked out our guide to 2Red giants, blue dwarfs, and cash-sucking black holes?

more must-reads

• How nine super-PACs that poured money into state races temporarily hid their donors. OpenSecrets.org
• Broadcasters push back against a federal order that political ad info be posted online. Sunlight Foundation
• Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) ends official relationship with his Senate Conservatives Fund so that it can become a super-PAC. Politico
• Obamacare opponents spent more on ads against the law than Obama spent on campaign spots in 2008. Republic Report
• Former pro-Newt Gingrich super-PAC official says that attacking Mitt Romney’s Bain Capital record “could still be toxic.” Slate

WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

payment methods

WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

“This could be the first time a corporation would be held criminally liable for forced labor in their own supply chains,” according to a retired special agent we talked to.

Wow.

And it is only because Mother Jones is funded primarily by donations from readers that we can mount ambitious, yearlong—or more—investigations like these two stories that are making waves.

About that: It’s unfathomably hard in the news business right now, and we came up about $28,000 short during our recent fall fundraising campaign. We simply have to make that up soon to avoid falling further behind than can be made up for, or needing to somehow trim $1 million from our budget, like happened last year.

If you can, please support the reporting you get from Mother Jones—that exists to make a difference, not a profit—with a donation of any amount today. We need more donations than normal to come in from this specific blurb to help close our funding gap before it gets any bigger.

payment methods

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