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Dallas Morning News: Was Jan. 6 an insurrection? Label fight rages a year after mob attacked U.S. Capitol

“The insurrection was a violent affront to free and fair elections and the orderly transition of power,” said Karen Hobart Flynn, president of the liberal group Common Cause. “January 6th interrupted two centuries of the peaceful transfer of power. It was staged by a domestic enemy fueled by the lies fed by the former president, some Republican politicians, and their allies who tried to subvert a bedrock democratic principle: that voters decide elections,” she said.

Voting & Elections 12.1.2021

The Hill: The Hill's Top Lobbyists 2021

Not all of those honored on this list are registered lobbyists. But they are all key players who the nation’s biggest companies, advocacy groups, labor unions and trade associations turn to when they want their voices heard in the nation’s capital. The ranks of policy experts, influencers and advocates run deep in Washington, but these are the people who stand out for delivering results for their clients in the halls of Congress and the administration. ... GRASSROOTS: Karen Hobert Flynn and Aaron Scherb, Common Cause 

The Guardian: ‘A core threat to our democracy’: threat of political violence growing across US

Stephen Spaulding, senior counsel at the government watchdog group Common Cause, described such violent tactics as “a core threat to our democracy”. “The threat of violence is really to intimidate people from doing their jobs and upholding their oath of office,” Spaulding said. “When you start having these violent episodes enter the system, it is totally counter to the way that we are supposed to engage in open and fair debate about policy issues in this country.”

Gannett/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Ron Johnson defends pass-through tax provision as Democrats accuse him of doing the bidding of his top donors

Jay Heck of Common Cause Wisconsin called the tax provision "one of the most glaring examples of quid-pro-quo pay-to-play politics I've ever seen." "The idea a U.S. Senator would stand in the way of a major initiative of his own party on a very specific provision of a complicated tax bill, and the fact it benefited two of his largest donors, I just think is pretty eye-opening," he said. "My goodness what a great investment for the Uihleins and Diane Hendricks."

News & Observer: Senators are helping pay Sen. Burr’s legal expenses. Here’s a closer look at the donors

“In my view, it’s the least troubling of the money,” said Paul S. Ryan, the vice president of policy and litigation at Common Cause. ‘I am far more concerned seeing people with business before Burr’s committees than I am seeing money from other members of Congress.” ... “There’s heightened concern of fundraising into a legal expense fund by a member of Congress not running for reelection,” Ryan said. “... The threat for corruption or, at a minimum, the appearance of corruption is greater when it comes to $10,000 contributions for a legal expenses fund for an individual who is leaving office in 18 months.”

Philadelphia Inquirer: First it was ‘fraud,’ then they just didn’t like the rules: How Pa. Republicans justified trying to overturn an election

“Part of democracy is being willing to accept the results of a legitimate election, even when it doesn’t favor you. We’ve just lost sight of that,” said Khalif Ali, executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, a nonpartisan advocacy group that supports voting rights. “Now what we’re hearing is this rhetoric that is leading people to believe democracy doesn’t work if it doesn’t get me my outcome. ....That rhetoric is absolutely decimating confidence in our democracy.”

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