Disclosure & Transparency

It's unclear why these groups — the very ones that have come to dominate campaigns in recent years — were exempted from pre-Election Day disclosures. But to some campaign finance watchdogs, like Philip Hensley-Robin, a former analyst for the League of Women Voters of New Jersey, the loophole — when coupled with other key shortcomings of the bill — belied its much-ballyhooed “transparency” title. “Overall, I think you could pick out, you know, a clause here or there that was good, but overall, it's a net negative for transparency,” said Hensley-Robin, who is now executive director of Common Cause in Pennsylvania.

Aaron Scherb, senior director of legislative affairs at Common Cause, a watchdog group with decades of experience and a longstanding national operation, told The Daily Beast that Rydin was not on his organization’s radar. Scherb even inquired with Common Cause’s state-level team in Rydin’s home of Texas. “They said that oddly they had never heard this guy’s name before,” Scherb said. “After the awful Citizens United decision, more than 13 years ago now, the ultra-wealthy and elites have had a golden megaphone that drowns out the voices of everyday Americans,” said Scherb, of Common Cause. “This is example number one-thousand for why we need reforms like the Freedom to Vote Act and the Disclose Act, to help restore balance and inform more Americans about the money that influences our politics.”

We join Delaware Common Cause and the Delaware Coalition for Open Government in calling on Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long to release an audit of her campaign finances — even though she is not required to do so by Delaware Law. Claire Snyder-Hall, Common Cause Delaware’s executive Director, joined Flaherty in asking Hall-Long’s campaign to disclose the audit. “The audit confirms the campaign’s claim there is no wrongdoing, so sharing that would go a long way to rebuilding public trust,” Snyder-Hall said. Snyder-Hall also pointed to a need for Delaware to amplify its regulation of campaign finance, calling for harsher penalties and more frequent reporting — priorities we continue to share.

This afternoon, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it would adopt a code of ethics. The move follows a series of scandals involving Supreme Court Justices that came to light in recent months. The announcement also comes at a time when the Senate Judiciary Committee has already moved forward legislation to establish an ethics code for the Supreme Court and is scheduled to vote this week on subpoenas for witnesses at the heart of some of the recent scandals.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee, faced with stonewalling by those who paid for unreported luxury junkets, must get to the truth by using its subpoena power."

Ann Webb, the policy director of government watchdog group Common Cause North Carolina, said “an agency that is designed to protect the interests of the public spending, state funds should be operated in such a way that it reflects the public interest in its structure — not simply the interest of a couple of very powerful individuals.” “Democracy requires transparency,” Webb said. Webb, with Common Cause, said it’s “really important to look at the holistic picture. All the ways that the legislature has been grabbing power for itself.” She said Gov Ops is just the latest example. Webb said that Common Cause is “always concerned with balance of power, and checks and balances disrupted, and that’s not only the balance of power among the three branches of government but also the ability of the people to oversee what their government is doing.”