American health care administration costs four times more than Canada's single-payer system | Salon.com

https://www.salon.com/2020/02/15/american-health-care-system-costs-four-times-more-than-canadas-single-payer-system/ 

Charlie Cooper

TheHill.com: Warren reintroduces bill to bar lawmakers from trading stocks

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/530968-warren-reintroduces-bill-to-bar-lawmakers-from-trading-stocks

Warren reintroduces bill to bar lawmakers from trading stocks. The reintroduction of the bill by Warren and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) coincides with scrutiny Georgia Sens. Kelly Loeffler (R) and David Perdue (R) are facing over their own stock trading during the pandemic.

Marty Wulfe

Trump can use funds he raised to "stop the steal" to enrich himself

https://www.democracynow.org/2020/12/22/trump_fundraising_pac

 

Because FEC is so weak, money raised by a PAC can be spent through firms controlled by the PAC founders or their relatives, thus enriching the PAC insiders rather than furthering the political cause for which the donors gave. Both small and large donors n be targeted. And any politician or political operative can run this type of scam – and they do. We have pointed out “liberal” ones in the past like ‘End Citizens United.’

 

Charlie Cooper and Tina Coplan

Toomey's language could benefit big banks or pave the way for lucrative post-Senate employment

https://www.dailyposter.com/p/gop-senators-last-minute-fed-language?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo2MDE2NTUsInBvc3RfaWQiOjI3Mjg5NzIwLCJfIjoiNHRGUUYiLCJpYXQiOjE2MDg1ODI2MjMsImV4cCI6MTYwODU4NjIyMywiaXNzIjoicHViLTM3Nzc4Iiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.DlDHEN1WhXixx32MYhLCHZIE6Jq0GihByWsroJL-hII

 

Without endorsing or condemning the Federal Reserve lending programs that Sen. Toomey wishes to limit, I post this because it connects large-scale contributions with specific legislative action by a senator and because there may be a motive to prepared for “retirement” in a cushy Wall Street job.

 

Charlie Cooper

Health care billionaire spends to influence anti-gerrymandering, open primary, and other ballot initiatives

https://khn.org/news/this-health-care-magnate-wants-to-fix-democracy-starting-in-colorado/

 

Charlie Cooper with thanks to Steven Cooper

 

 

Small donor funding is rising for both parties, but Dems have raised more

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/10/small-donors-give-big-2020-thanks-to-technology/

 

The trend has impacted both Presidential and Congressional elections.

 

Charlie Cooper

Biden outraised Trump from both large and small donors

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/20/us/politics/joe-biden-donors.html

 

Biden campaign tries to shield names of biggest bundlers.

 

Charlie Cooper

A new study finds even more influence by wealthy elites on U.S. policy-making

https://truthout.org/articles/bidens-victory-was-hardly-a-win-for-democracy-it-was-another-win-for-the-1/

 

Research published this year by McGuire and Delahunt to sharpen the focus and deepen understanding of how wealthy elites and business interest groups control policy by “the transfer of large amounts of money to policy makers from the wealthiest sources focused intensely on particular policies.” Their work uses artificial intelligence techniques to build on that of Gilens and Page who used more standard statistical methods. The author claims that Biden’s recent presidential campaign was funded by the same elite sources. A summary of McGuire’s and Hunt’s October 2020 paper is here.

 

Charlie Cooper

 

 

9 of the 10 most expensive U.S. Senate races in history occurred in 2020

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/12/most-expensive-races-of-all-time-senate2020/?utm_source=mailchimp&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=mstexs-120920&utm_source=1+News+Notifications&utm_campaign=c71b41f13e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_11_26_08_46_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_776aca4f13-c71b41f13e-212295006

 

Republicans won 8 of those 9 despite being outspent by $167 million. (The bigger spender historically has usually won.)

 

Charlie Cooper

 

 

Campaign finance pays for the ones who give

https://stephensemler.substack.com/p/house-democrats-get-paid-by-weapons?s=03 

No congressional seats in Texas flipped, but campaign cash flowed into key races like it was a battleground

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/politics/2020/12/07/no-congressional-seats-in-texas-flipped-but-campaign-cash-flowed-into-key-races-like-it-was-a-battleground/

 

WASHINGTON — More than $110 million in campaign cash was spent in Texas' 12 most contested U.S. House races this election cycle, underscoring the reality that donors — if not necessarily voters — considered the state to be a bona fide battleground.

That staggering sum, revealed late last week in new campaign finance reports, came on top of the nearly $63 million spent in this year's U.S. Senate race, the state's other hot federal battle.

All of that money didn't end up mattering much. Not a single congressional seat flipped, even after Democrats targeted 10 pick-up opportunities in the House, along with Sen. John Cornyn's seat in the Senate, and the GOP sought to win back two seats in the House.

But the tallies still represented a significant shift, signaling that there's enough Democratic enthusiasm in the longstanding GOP state to ensure pricey elections for years to come.

Consider that in Texas' 12 most active House races, fundraising and spending increased fourfold from 2016. Fourteen candidates brought in more than $3 million this cycle, compared to one four years ago. Democrats in those districts together raised about $53 million, while Republicans posted $58 million.

That relative partisan parity is stunning in and of itself.

In 2016, Democrats in those 12 districts collectively brought in a piddly $1.7 million, leaving them $17.3 million short of their Republican counterparts. So while fundraising has increased substantially all around, the trend is most pronounced on the Democratic side.

Here are a few other takeaways from the most recent reports filed with the Federal Election Commission:

Republicans spent like they had fights on their hands

The GOP was confident heading into Election Day, dismissing the idea that a blue wave would wash over Texas. Their bravado was justified. Not only did they hold every congressional seat targeted by the Democrats, their candidates generally won by larger margins than two years ago.

But they didn't take anything for granted, campaign finance data suggest.

Republicans in the dozen most-competitive House races collectively spent more than $13 million in the most recent reporting period. (That time frame runs from mid-October through Nov. 23, but the vast majority of the funds in those races were spent before the Nov. 3 election.)

The same time period four years ago? Conservative candidates in those districts collectively spent about $1.9 million.

Dan Crenshaw is a fundraising juggernaut

Houston Rep. Dan Crenshaw, a freshman Republican, is a truly elite fundraiser.

The retired Navy SEAL brought in nearly $19 million through late November. That's Scrooge McDuck kind of cash, giving him status that typically only comes with being part of House leadership. Think House Speaker Nancy Pelosi or House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

Case in point: The $2.7 million that Crenshaw raised in the most recent period is more than some notable Texas candidates raised over this entire election cycle.

Crenshaw's name has already been floated as a potential gubernatorial candidate, perhaps sooner rather than later. If the Republican can raise this kind of moolah amid more stringent federal guidelines, it's not hard to imagine him raking in enormous sums under unrestricted state rules.

MJ Hegar out-raised Cornyn

Cornyn early on braced for a tough reelection challenge, warning his conservative supporters that they couldn't be complacent. And perhaps with good reason.

While the Republican defeated Democrat MJ Hegar, an Air Force veteran, by a comfortable 9.6 percentage points, Hegar ended up raising more money than Cornyn over the two-year cycle to date: $29.6 million to $28.4 million.

Those totals still put the duo behind several other notable Senate clashes across the U.S. In South Carolina, for instance, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham brought in some $109 million to defeat Democrat Jaime Harrison, who broke records by raising more than $132 million.

Both Cornyn and Hegar, it should be noted, benefited from outside spending.

Gina Ortiz Jones spent the most per vote — and lost

Democrat Gina Ortiz Jones, an Air Force veteran, in 2018 lost to Rep. Will Hurd, R-San Antonio, by less than 1,000 votes in a battle to represent a sweeping border district. So she tried again this year, raising more than $7 million for a race most pundits expected her to win.

Jones ended up losing by an even bigger margin to Republican Tony Gonzales, a Navy veteran.

Her defeat this year also came with the inglorious honor of having spent the most money per vote – at least among Texas hottest congressional races – to then go on and lose. The total in Jones' case ended up being about $52 per vote.

Others in the running were Democrat Wendy Davis – who spent about $50 per vote to lose to Rep. Chip Roy, R-Austin – and Republican Wesley Hunt, who spent about $49 per vote to lose to Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, D-Houston.

Ron Wright ran the leanest winning campaign

While money poured into congressional races across Texas, the race between Rep. Ron Wright, R-Arlington, and Democrat Stephen Daniel didn't receive quite the same attention. Neither candidate brought in more than $1 million in the race, which Wright won by 8.8 points.

But that outcome meant that Wright ran the most efficient winning campaign, spending less than $5 per vote.

The closest contender to Wright was Fort Bend County Sheriff Troy Nehls, a Republican who defeated Democrat Sri Preston Kulkarni for a seat being vacated by Rep. Pete Olson, R-Sugar Land. Nehls ended up spending about $8 per vote.

Renaud D. Brown, M.M.

 

Uber, Lyft, et. al. spent $200 million to buy a law

https://www.curbed.com/2020/11/california-uber-lyft-prop-22.html

 

Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, and others used their apps and public media to win a California ballot question (58% in favor) enacting a law denying rights to their employees. [I’ve heard that corporate Democrats championed this law.] Denies minimum wage, unemployment, overtime protection, etc.

 

In this case, the voters overturned a pro-labor law enacted by the state legislature. We’ve seen pro-democracy ballot questions overturned or undermined cavalierly by state legislatures in South Dakota and Florida. Let’s see whether the California legislature will act.

 

Ballot questions are a double-edged sword. While they seem to offer citizens a way to overcome legislatures that are controlled by corporate contributions, SCOTUS has ruled that it is unconstitutional to limit spending on ballot questions, which tilts the scales very significantly. We should consider adding this issue to our hearing presentation.

 

Charlie Cooper

 

 

Biden's campaign broke records in funding from multiple sources

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/12/biden-campaign-1billion-from-donors/?utm_source=mailchimp&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=biden-campaign-1bil-120720&utm_source=1+News+Notifications&utm_campaign=3491ed9da8-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_11_26_08_46_COPY_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_776aca4f13-3491ed9da8-212295006

 

Individuals, PACs, dark money.

 

Charlie Cooper

 

Pres. Trump breaks pledge to ban foreign lobbyists from government

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/12/trump-appointments-from-lobbyist-fundraisers-fara-agents/?utm_source=mailchimp&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=trump-appoint-120420&utm_source=1+News+Notifications&utm_campaign=5651d34347-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2019_11_26_08_46_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_776aca4f13-5651d34347-212295006

 

 

Charlie Cooper

Cracks Emerge in No Corporate PAC Money Movement

https://readsludge.com/2020/12/03/cracks-emerge-in-no-corporate-pac-money-movement/

 

Rep. Elaine Luria (D-Va.) is likely to be the first to abandon the campaign finance pledge, after promising voters before she was elected that “this kind of pay-to-play governance is unacceptable.”

 

Marty Wulfe

Greg Palast and Georgia voter group sue to have voters restored to list of those registered for Jan 5 election

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/us/a-lawsuit-in-georgia-claims-that-nearly-200000-registered-voters-were-improperly-purged.html?searchResultPosition=1

 

The groups claim that 195,000 Georgians who did not move have been erroneously removed from voter roles and are asking a federal district court to order them to be restored. Georgia election official has denied the charges.

 

Charlie Cooper

1 Percent of P.P.P. Borrowers Got Over One-Quarter of the Loan Money

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/business/paycheck-protection-program-coronavirus.html 

 

A federal judge has forced the first in-depth account of PPP spending. Fraud investigations are underway

 

Angad Singh

Sen. Loeffler oversees agencies that regulate her husband's multi-billion $ financial trading businesses

https://www.dailyposter.com/p/loefflers-huge-financial-conflict?token=eyJ1c2VyX2lkIjo2MDE2NTUsInBvc3RfaWQiOjIxNjIzMTAxLCJfIjoiNHRGUUYiLCJpYXQiOjE2MDY5OTYxMTksImV4cCI6MTYwNjk5OTcxOSwiaXNzIjoicHViLTM3Nzc4Iiwic3ViIjoicG9zdC1yZWFjdGlvbiJ9.vRPc7ccYET8NeGv2Kvt2E6WbwbJfS1zQ1H3BZ3bpTXo

 

Her husband contributed $10 million via a PAC to help elect her, and she spent $23 of her own funds.

 

Charlie Cooper

 

2,596 Trades in One Term: Inside Senator Perdue's Stock Portfolio

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/us/politics/david-perdue-stock-trades.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&fbclid=IwAR33KSvX8rIm_wHYI3zQX8v5OTCAV1gF9TJ9gyHzsxPqmDVwNYopbccN-yE

 

The Georgia Republican’s stock trades have far outpaced those of his Senate colleagues and have included a range of companies within his Senate committees’ oversight, an analysis shows.

 

Marty Wulfe

Sen. David Perdue had 2,600 stock trades during his 6-year term

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/02/us/politics/david-perdue-stock-trades.html?action=click&module=Top%20Stories&pgtype=Homepage

 

More than the next 5 in Congress combined.

 

Charlie Cooper

 

 

Candidate and outside spending are highly correlated with which side wins House and Senate races

https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2020/11/top-spenders-won-88-percent-of-2020-races/

 

Good overview of 2020 federal election.

 

Charlie Cooper