Who Was The Fifth Republican Candidate?
There was a force far more influential than any of the four front-runners.
On the Newsstand:fundraising
An Unconstitutional Debate
America’s obsession with the Constitution affects modern American politics
Picking Charities
It’s Relay for Life time again, so I’ve been thinking a bit about how charities raise money and which charities I’d like to support with a college student’s meager donations. More than twice as many Americans participate in Relay each year (3.5 million) than get cancer each year (1.5 million); Relay has become so widespread that participants can raise money ... Read More
GOP Losing to Dems in Fundraising Battle?
So says the Washington Post. This is probably the worst news we’ve heard for the GOP since the revelations about the RNC-funded trip to a lesbian-themed bondage night club in LA. Or was it a bondage-themed lesbian night club? Speaking of which, how much of this fundraising shortfall can be attributed to Michael Steele’s gross mismanagement of the RNC? Or does it ... Read More
Funding Innovation for HBCUs
Dr. John Silvanus Wilson on the new administration's approach to supporting Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Reform They Can Believe In
Politicians' Self-Interest and the Future of Campaign Finance Reform
Reflections on a Winning Campaign
David Plouffe discusses the 2008 race and campaign reform David Plouffe was the chief campaign manager for President Obama’s 2008 race. He has consulted the Democratic Party for years and is respected nation-wide as a political strategist. Harvard Political Review: Since the inauguration, the Obama for America campaign has become Organizing for America, but grassroots excitement seems to have ... Read More
Spontaneous Combustion
This is the best fodder for late-night comedy I’ve seen since the last time Michael Steele spoke. It is encouraging that most people seem appalled, but some conservatives appear to have a limitless appetite for self-destruction. The next time Republicans accuse liberals of disrespecting the commander-in-chief, expect eyes to roll. And as for Mr. Spontaneous himself? If the whole Congress ... Read More
Big Aspirations, Smaller Results
How much have Texan oilmen shaped America? Reporter Brian Burrough follows his last corporate epic, Barbarians at the Gate, with a new book, The Big Rich, replacing skyscrapers and three piece suits with oil wells and Stetson hats. It is a sprawling story set across several continents, chronicling gumption, love, betrayal, politics, family squabbles, and Muammar al-Gaddafi. But if the ... Read More
Doing Well in Doing Good
Can capitalism work for charity? Economists are no strangers to knee-jerk argumentation. Their soundest arguments are often those that strike most sharply at the beliefs non-economists hold dear, and statistics are not often enough to unseat them. Conventional wisdom, then, would suggest that Dan Pallotta should lower his expectations for the controversial argument laid out in Uncharitable: How Restraints on ... Read More
Obama is Out of Hillary’s Shadow, But is She Out of Bill’s?
The NY times ran an article today discussing shifts in support within the Democratic Party from Hillary to Obama. After candidates reported first-quarter fundraising figures last weekend, it became evident that many former supporters of Bill Clinton had “switched sides” and were now opening up their wallets to Obama instead of Hillary. Such a shift should have been expected considering ... Read More
Senator Warner, A Likely Candidate?
The Richmond Times-Dispatch ran an interesting article last week on Sen. John Warner’s (R-Va.) fundraising (or lack thereof) in the first quarter of 2007. While the news has been full of reports noting the vast war chests of many politicians, Warner reported raising only $500 since January of this year. With rumors swirling around about his potential retirement when his ... Read More
