Press Release
Government Watchdog Supports New Bill to Ban Members of Congress from Trading Stock
Majority of Americans support a stock trading ban
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Media Contacts
Katie Scally
Communications Director
kscally@commoncause.org
202-736-5713
Ariana Marmolejo
Communications Strategist
amarmolejo@commoncause.org
Kenny Colston
Regional Communications Strategist (Midwest)
kcolston@commoncause.org
Maya Majikas
Communications Strategist
mmajikas@commoncause.org
Common Cause’s network of national and state democracy reform experts are frequent media commentators. To talk with one of our experts, please reach out to any member of the press team above.
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Salon: Joe Biden’s agenda faces an unprecedented onslaught of dark money: The FCC is just the start
"It's clear the industry sees no problems with the status quo," said Getachew. "In a Senate where the Democratic majority is not high, they only need a couple of Democrats to tilt the balance in their favor."
Lobbying campaigns against Sohn, Getachew noted, have included those from the Fraternal Order of Police, which has opposed Sohn on the grounds that she personally supports end-to-end encrypted messaging (over which the FCC has no jurisdiction). The FOP argues it can delay police efforts to access cell phone records.
Lobbying campaigns against Sohn, Getachew noted, have included those from the Fraternal Order of Police, which has opposed Sohn on the grounds that she personally supports end-to-end encrypted messaging (over which the FCC has no jurisdiction). The FOP argues it can delay police efforts to access cell phone records.
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Bolts/Center for Public Integrity: How one city ended prison gerrymandering
Some of these asymmetries stem from state legislators’ decision to exempt local governments from the laws they passed. Kathay Feng, an advocate at the voting rights organization Common Cause, said this may have been a tactic in some states to avoid paying the cost of local changes, or to sidestep conflicts with “home rule” laws that give localities wide latitude.
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The Guardian: ‘We’re hitting the soil’: Georgia activists mobilize voters in an off year
“No matter the time of year, it’s about paying close attention to the laws impacting voters, taking the opportunity to gather the information that’s going to impact their access, and working to keep their best interests in mind,” said Aunna Dennis, executive director of Common Cause Georgia. “We are, of course, a hub for boots-on-the-ground work, but for us, the work is also getting our hands really wet with election reform work, like drafting legislation to create accessibility or even giving testimony, like we will for HB200.”
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Wisconsin Examiner: Bipartisan vote tracking measure brings parties together on elections
“My concern always is that a generally positive measure like this might later during the legislative process be amended to include some onerous (anti-voting ) provision which then makes it impossible to support the overall measure,” says Jay Heck of Common Cause Wisconsin. “That occurred a few times in the last session with some voting measures.”
One positive aspect of SB-39 is that it’s a stand-alone measure, Heck says, “rather than the mixed packages of bills we saw last session on elections and voting where some...
One positive aspect of SB-39 is that it’s a stand-alone measure, Heck says, “rather than the mixed packages of bills we saw last session on elections and voting where some...
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NBC News: Sex, drugs and deleted ballots? New Mexico elections official hit with ethics charge
Mario Jimenez, executive director of Common Cause New Mexico and a former elections official, applauded the ethics commission for investigating the matter but said he was nonetheless disheartened to learn of the allegations.
"When I read it, I was nothing short of infuriated," he told NBC News. "We're losing public trust."
"When I read it, I was nothing short of infuriated," he told NBC News. "We're losing public trust."
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Honolulu Civil Beat: ‘Pay To Play’: Hawaii Moves To Expand The Ban On Contractor Campaign Donations
Heather Ferguson, director of state operations for Common Cause, said the good-government group supports extending Hawaii’s ban on contractor donations to include at least the officers of a contracted entity.
“It erodes public trust when contractors are allowed to contribute to campaigns because of the public perception of those donations due to many of the high-profile federal cases,” Ferguson said. “It would be helpful for the public to know that contractors can’t use campaign contributions as an additional way to...
“It erodes public trust when contractors are allowed to contribute to campaigns because of the public perception of those donations due to many of the high-profile federal cases,” Ferguson said. “It would be helpful for the public to know that contractors can’t use campaign contributions as an additional way to...
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Dallas Morning News: Big bucks, powerful influence at play as Texans rise to key leadership jobs in U.S. House
In the House it’s one year and in the Senate it’s two — though there are all sorts of ways to “lobby under the table,” said Aaron Scherb, senior director of legislative affairs at Common Cause, a government watchdog group that decries the revolving door and its role in policymaking.
“This is one among many of the problems that just show the influence that big money and special interests have in D.C.,” Scherb said.
“Congress has to change the incentive structure, so that people don’t feel the...
“This is one among many of the problems that just show the influence that big money and special interests have in D.C.,” Scherb said.
“Congress has to change the incentive structure, so that people don’t feel the...
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NPR (AUDIO): Pennsylvania voting officials are still fighting election deniers
"We're a purple state, so it makes for a bit of a contentious conversation at times around democracy," says Khalif Ali, executive director of the advocacy group Common Cause Pennsylvania.
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Bloomberg: Ohio AFL-CIO President Pulled Into Historic Corruption Trial
“In Ohio we have a system that leaves us in the dark, so what jurors are going to have to do is tease out what is legal behavior in a system that avoids public scrutiny,” said Catherine Turcer, executive director of Common Cause Ohio and a longtime Ohio advocate of campaign finance and government reform.
“It’s really important that Ohioans hear what happened behind the scenes,” she said.
“It’s really important that Ohioans hear what happened behind the scenes,” she said.
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Associated Press: Bill raising riot penalties in North Carolina clears House
Tyler Daye of Common Cause North Carolina said the legislation, if enacted, could be used to punish bystanders or speakers whose words inadvertently incite violence.
“If a riot takes place, some innocent, peaceful protesters may be interwoven with intruders who have come to hijack their message,” Daye said.
“If a riot takes place, some innocent, peaceful protesters may be interwoven with intruders who have come to hijack their message,” Daye said.
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Boston Globe: Massachusetts Senate leaders making push to abolish term limits on chamber’s president
“Without term limits, you run the risk of having leaders who must either be politically disposed, forced out under ethical clouds, or rarely, they might just lose interest and leave voluntarily. None of those scenarios are healthy,” said Geoff Foster, executive director of Common Cause Massachusetts. “Term limits are really important to ensure stable transitions of power.”
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Reuters: North Carolina Republicans reap reward of judicial wins in redistricting ruling
"I wouldn't be surprised if they just went through the kabuki theater, and we actually end up with exactly the same maps," Catherine Turcer, the executive director of Common Cause Ohio, which campaigns against partisan redistricting, said of the commission.
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