shadowy groups

[sisyphusshrugged]

I expect that Our Fearless Leader will shortly condemn the Chamber of Commerce (or, you know, he would if they weren't campaigning for him)

Attack ads from a "Voters Education Committee" in Washington state aimed at a Democratic candidate were funded by a single $1.5 million donor: the United States Chamber of Commerce.

The ads targeting Democratic state attorney general candidate Deborah Senn were pulled Friday, two days before the source of the money was disclosed after a heated battle between the state and the Seattle-based committee before Tuesday's primary.

The committee agreed to disclose its donor after months of arguing that it was exempt from registering as a political group because the ads do not specifically advocate voting for or against Senn.

Stan Anderson, the chamber's chief legal counsel, characterized the dispute as a free-speech issue.

"We didn't challenge this woman's integrity," Anderson said. "We talked about her record. We think we have the right to do that and we're going to pursue our rights in litigation."

Senn, a former state insurance commissioner, and her opponent in the Democratic primary have decried the ads. Senn spokeswoman Karen Besserman said the "scurrilous, negative campaign ... has clearly been funded by out-of-state special-interest money."

The Voters Education Committee is a "527," registered with the IRS as a political group under Section 527 of the IRS tax code. These soft-money groups have been responsible for countless ads questioning President Bush's stewardship and putting John Kerry on the defensive about his service in Vietnam.

The Chamber of Commerce's political arm, the Institute for Legal Reform, contributes to "voter education" in Supreme Court and attorney general races around the country about 25 contests this year, Anderson said.

The $1.5 million given to the Washington group "is not the most nor is it the least," he said. The chamber has also supported a national group known as The November Fund, which plans ads urging limits on lawsuit awards and criticizing trial lawyers, including vice presidential nominee John Edwards.

Comments

[misanthropoid.livejournal.com]

I'm not surprised except by the message they chose to use in challenging her. They made her sound soft on corporations when in fact I don't see much savings from the forgiven $600,000 of the fine. Who knows, perhaps they have some really good dirt on her primary opponent that they'll release in late October.

In other news, It does always pay to watch this site http://www.opensecrets.org/527s/527cmtes.asp?level=C&cycle=2004