Outside groups dominating California election spending this year

[Judi Lynn]

Source: McClatchy Newspapers

Posted on Thursday, 10.07.10
Outside groups dominating California election spending this year

By Michael Doyle
McClatchy Newspapers

WASHINGTON — A pro-life group ponied up $31.58 on Monday to support San Joaquin Valley congressional candidate Jeff Denham.

It was a drop in the bucket, but the bucket is getting bigger.

So-called independent expenditures are soaring this year, buoyed by Supreme Court rulings. The result shapes political campaigns within California and well beyond.

"It comes from both parties," Modesto-based political consultant Mike Lynch said Thursday. "Independent expenditures, in their myriad forms, are utilized by right wingers, left wingers and the special interests of every industry."

Outside groups, apart from party campaign committees, have already spent more than $75 million on federal races this year. This will escalate quickly in the final month of the 2010 campaign.

Some campaign spending by outside groups is both modest and transparent, like the National Right to Life Committee's pro-Denham newspaper ad. Denham is currently a Republican state senator from Atwater. He's heavily favored to win the 19th Congressional District, which stretches from Modesto to Fresno via the Sierra Nevada.

Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/10/07/1862416/outside-groups-dominating-election.html

[tularetom]

1. That's nothing, whitman alone has doubled that $75 mil

BTW after Nov Denham will be my congresscritter. He's a semi harmless asshole replacing a mostly harmless asshole (George Radanovitch) because he beat a really dangerous asshole (former Bay Area critter Richard Pombo) in the repub primary.

I don't like Denham but this is a gerrymandered republican district, no Democrat is gonna get elected here and compared to Pombo he's probably as good as we're going to get.

[ej510]

2. Richard Ponmbo is from tracy, CA his family owns the city. everywhere you

go you see Pombo shit.

[tularetom]

4. I know, the douchebag carpetbagged into our district to run

Don't ask me why. I think the bay area part of his district was growing faster than the valley part and the district was getting too smart to elect a turd like him.

Pombo is a real piece of shit. I don't expect Denham to be worth crap but he's a bazillion times better than Pombo.

[movonne]

5. That same thing is happening here in coos county or. with Art Robinson signs

everywhere...of course coos county is mostly red necks but it was never like this...

[24601]

3. I've always favored requiring a contributor to eligible to vote in

the election at hand. It doesn't fix everything, but it gets rid of outside money influencing campaigns.

[Zorra]

6. Maybe Fiorina and Whitman got a big chunk for advertising from Chinese investors.

Or maybe not.

But we would never know if this is true because there are no longer disclosure laws thanks to the 5 fascists on the SCOTUS.