Campaign Finance Reform | Democracy

A Window on Campaign Abuse

NY Times, Editorial – The secret world of undisclosed political contributions is in desperate need of sunlight. Public corporations are giving money in support of political candidates without any accountability to shareholders or consumers. Charities are taking tax-deductible contributions and improperly funneling them to strident advocacy groups. All the while, government watchdogs are dozing.

Last week, finally, there were encouraging signs that two government agencies were beginning to pay attention. One was from an expected quarter: New York State’s attorney general, Eric Schneiderman, who is looking into questionable transactions by the United States Chamber of Commerce. The other is the Internal Revenue Service, which should have cracked down on abuses of the tax code after the 2010 elections, but might be stirring now.

Read the rest of this article at the New York Times [Here]