Dems file FEC complaint over alleged GOP laundering scheme

Heh. Problem is that this kind of stuff doesn't resonate with the people all that much, but it can distract the GOPers for a bit.

The Michigan Democratic Party filed an official complaint with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday, alleging that the Michigan Republican Party and the Republican National Committee struck a deal to get around campaign finance limits and launder roughly half a million dollars in contributions from Michigan residents through the RNC and back to the Michigan GOP.

These allegations first came to light with an article in the Daily Caller last week, which we reported on at the time. The Michigan GOP denies any wrongdoing in the matter, but now the FEC will presumably open an investigation reach its own conclusion.

The Daily Caller cited an unnamed source within the GOP:

“It was a known secret that a deal had been struck on the topic,” a former RNC official confirmed to The Daily Caller.

“I think the benefit to them was them getting guaranteed money,” the source said of the Michigan GOP, “and the benefit to the RNC was getting higher fundraising numbers.”

The article also noted that FEC reports showed that a group of Michigan donors all maxed out their contributions to the RNC in the last days of 2009, donating nearly half a million dollars collectively. The RNC then transferred that money back to the state party in two payments in early 2010.

DNC VIDEO- Palin, Bachmann: The Loon Rangers!

By GottaLaff

Okay, the DNC didn't call them the Loon Rangers. That's a name I came up with awhile back. But if the lunacy fits:

DNC beats RNC in March cash haul

But I thought Dems were demoralized and unmotivated?

Washington (CNN) - The Democratic National Committee raised at least $13 million in March, a Democratic source tells CNN.

That would be at least $1.6 million more in fundraising than the DNC's counterpart, the Republican National Committee, which reported bringing in $11.4 million last month.

The DNC's March total is at least $5.5 million more than they raised in February. The RNC's total last month is nearly $4 million more than what they raised in February.

The divisive debate over the Democrats' health care reform legislation, which last month passed through Congress and was signed into law by President Obama, is most likely behind much of the bounce in cash.

VIDEO- DNC: You talkin' to US about scandals, GOP?

By GottaLaff

Massa? Rangel? Oh yeah? You think we got scandals, Rushpublics? Huh?

You talkin' to us, GOP? You talkin' to us?



Look who's ticklin' talkin' now.

VIDEO: 116 GOP Highway Hypocrites

By GottaLaff



Video via the DNC's Rapid Response team.

116. 116:

A new Web video from the Democratic National Committee (DNC) claimed more than half of the GOP lawmakers in Congress, including prominent members of leadership, were guilty of railing against the $787 billion stimulus act in the past year, only to have touted projects in their home states or districts as having created jobs.

The video says that 116 Republicans in Congress are guilty of "hypocrisy," a charge leveled by the DNC in recent weeks in defense of the year-old stimulus bill.

Hyp. O. Crites.

America first!

VIDEO- Pres. Obama to DNC: "Let me be clear: I am not going to walk away from health insurance reform"

By GottaLaff



"So just in case there's any confusion out there, let me be clear: I am not going to walk away from health insurance reform. I'm not going to walk away from the American people. I'm not going to walk away on this challenge. I'm not going to walk away on any challenge. We're moving forward. We are moving forward!"

Transcript here.

DNC gave $500K to anti-public option Ben Nel$on's health care ad campaign

By GottaLaff



This will ruffle more than a few feathers, mine included:

Americablog discovers the DNC sent nearly $500,000 to the Nebraska Democratic Committee to run advertisements defending Sen. Ben Nelson's (D-NE) vote for health care reform.

"Nelson announced his support for the much-weakened Senate health care bill on December 19, 2009. He cast his vote for final passage on December 24, 2009. The DNC transferred money to the Nebraska party on December 28, 2009. You do the math."

More from Sudbay:

So, not only did Nelson get bought off with Medicaid funding from the federal treasury, it now appears he got TV ads, paid for by supporters of real health care reform, praising him for killing real reform. As David Dayen noted last week, Nelson was fully prepared to torpedo the bill anyway.

Most state parties would greatly appreciate a $500,000 infusion of cash from the DNC. That doesn't happen very often.

It sure doesn't. Imagine those who could have made, you know, good use of money like that, instead of anti-public option, anti-Medicare-buy-in, anti-abortion rights Nelson.

Way to unify the party, DNC. Enjoy siding with obstructionists much? Apparently, real health care reform and the lives of millions of Americans weren't a huge priority.

As Greg Sargent puts it:

Joe Sudbay reports that your donations to the DNC may have funded ads praising Ben Nelson for watering down reform — perhaps not the goal you intended.

No, perhaps not. Not even close.

Round 3: Obama to address DNC gathering

By GottaLaff

(via)

Round 1: House Republicans.

Round 2: Senate Republicans.

Round 3: The DNC.

The president on Saturday will headline the Democratic National Committee's Winter Meeting – an annual gathering of political insiders and grassroots activists who make up the core of the national party, CNN has learned.

He sure is making the, er, rounds.

Too bad he never makes an effort to reach out.

DNC asks supporters to take on Palin's 'lies'

By GottaLaff

President Obama did say recently, if you recall, that he's willing to call out those who spread lies. Well, here we go, it's come to this: Dems v. Facebook, er, Palin the Blogger:

The Democratic National Committee is taking fresh aim at Sarah Palin, encouraging supporters to attack the former Alaska governor on Facebook in order to "debunk her lies."

Debunking her bunk could be a full time career for anyone with time on their hands.

In an e-mail to supporters, and on a new Web site, the DNC asks supporters to call out Palin when she uses Facebook to transmit what the committee says are falsehoods.

It's time to stop the propaganda in its tracks, and all those trusty Facebook cub reporters will now be on their toes. Grassrootsers are the new rapid response team.

Fighting back. Hmmm, this all has a familiar ring to it.

VIDEO: Call 'Em Out! DNC targets Health Insurance Lobby

By GottaLaff

(screen shot of DNC web page... click to enlarge)

Call. 'Em. Out! And don't let up, not for one minute:

The Democratic National Committee is targeting the health insurance industry in its latest public relations campaign to try and discredit critics of President Obama's efforts to reform the nation's health care system, a party official tells CNN.

VIDEO: The health care reform ad the DNC pulled at Dole's request

By GottaLaff

Really? This "twisted his support for a bipartisan compromise for health care reform legislation into something else entirely"?

Gee whiz, it was awfully partisan of Bob Dole to say this was partisan:



The ad you'll never see on air, because if there is one thing any political organization would want to avoid, it's a partisan ad campaign.

DNC Pulls Ad at Dole's Request

By GottaLaff

I tried to embed the DNC ad, but couldn't. I couldn't even play it. It is now set to "private":

The DNC has agreed to pull a TV ad featuring former Senate Majority Leader Bob Dole (R-KS) "following objections Dole conveyed to the White House that the ad twists his support for a bipartisan compromise for health care reform legislation into something else entirely," ABC News reports.

"The ad, which was set to launch Monday, features Dole and other Republican former officials advocating in general terms for health care reform."

Dole said he found it a bit ironic that "all I've been doing is urging bipartisanship" and that was used for partisan purposes.

Could that be considered uni-bipartisanship?

Refreshingly strong statement from DNC: Republicans have "no boundaries, no shame"

By GottaLaff

Via our pals at The Mudflats. If only more of our representatives were this direct and forceful:

"The Republican Party has thrown in its lot with the terrorists — the Taliban and Hamas this morning — in criticizing the President for receiving the Nobel Peace prize. Republicans cheered when America failed to land the Olympics and now they are criticizing the President of the United States for receiving the Nobel Peace prize — an award he did not seek but that is nonetheless an honor in which every American can take great pride — unless of course you are the Republican Party. The 2009 version of the Republican Party has no boundaries, has no shame and has proved that they will put politics above patriotism at every turn. It’s no wonder only 20 percent of Americans admit to being Republicans anymore – it’s an embarrassing label to claim."

They not only described the Rushpublics, they described every tantruming two-year-old I've encountered at an airport or dentist's office.

Video- New DNC HCR Ad: "Every Day"

Video- DNC Takes On "Czar" Meme

White House: Czar critics taking marching orders from Glenn Beck

By GottaLaff

Remember this?

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Now the White House is fighting back against this insanity:

Now the White House and its allies are accusing administration critics of taking marching orders from talk show host Glenn Beck, and pointing out that George W. Bush's administration appointed dozens of "czars" during his eight years in office.

"I think it's been somewhat remarkable that in previous administrations, so-called criticism of this has been a bit deafening, the silence has been deafening, only to have it come around as a political issue now," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said Wednesday.

Later in the afternoon, White House communications director Anita Dunn posted a "reality check" about czars on the administration's Web site, noting that the term is not an official White House title and that several of those Obama appointed "czars" were actually approved by the Senate.

Wrong! You lie! "Czar" is a black socialist Nazi commie Hussein Obama word!

The Democratic National Committee was more blunt: "In leveling these ludicrous attacks, Republicans have crowned themselves the czars of hypocrisy," DNC press secretary Hari Sevugan said. Party officials blasted out six different e-mails to reporters on Wednesday flagging the Bush administration's reliance on "czars," citing news reports that going back to 2001.

Hypocrisy czars. I'm likin' that one. I may have to steal it.

"Most telling of the credibility of these attacks is that they come from the same Republican party that didn't utter a peep about the 47 documented czars in the Bush administration even when the so called 'abstinence czar' was caught soliciting," Sevugan said, referring to Randall Tobias, a top State Department who resigned in 2007 after he was caught soliciting prostitutes.

Boy Georgie had a Prostitute Czar. Perfect.

DNC, OFA Dump Demand for the Public Option

We're getting screwed over big time. Time to hit the phones. You can read the bill here.

Organizing for America has dropped the demand for the public option from their open letter to members of Congress. As recently as Sept. 11, the letter featured on OFA’s Health Care Action Center stated that health care reform must:

“Guarantee choice - Every American must have the freedom to choose their plan and doctor - including the choice of a public insurance option.”

A cached version of OFA’s site from Sept. 11 can be viewed here.

(snip)

The letter appearing on the current site still urges members of Congress to support President Obama’s plan for health reform - which includes a public option - however the word “must” has been dropped.

This change confirms Obama’s position on the public option: he wants it, but is willing to drop it to pass legislation.

The recent revision also signals that the Democratic Party and its leadership will no longer insist that health reform legislation include the choice of a public insurance plan, given that the Democratic National Committee operates OFA.

VIDEO- DNC ad: Pawlenty is a liar

By GottaLaff



We need to go on the offensive, and we need to be consistent about it:

Ahead of President Obama's visit to Minneapolis Saturday, the Democratic National Committee is out with a new attack ad painting Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty as a politician attempting to appeal to the "extremists" in the Republican party.

"Tim Pawlenty is spreading lies about health reform," the nearly two-minute web ad charges.

See, if you smack 'em down, they get all defensive and stuff:

RNC Spokesman LeRoy Coleman released the following statement in response to the DNC ad:

“Once again, the Democrats are desperately trying to shift attention away from their extraordinarily unpopular health care plan – especially on a day when the President is bringing his traveling road show to Minnesota in an attempt to sell his floundering government-run health care proposal. Minnesotans, however, aren’t fooled by the rhetoric. The President’s government-run health care plan would increase costs, increase taxes, increase the deficit and reduce health care choice and quality.”

Um, no. Once again Rushpublics, "you lie!" Here's proof.

Video- DNC TV Ad: "Michele Bachmann Wants To End Medicare"

Hahahahaha!!! The DNC has an ad ready for all of our fav Wingers. Gotta is out for the evening and I'm doing some clean up work, so it'll be light posting tonight, but I'll do my best.

DNC Video- Dick Cheney? "Wrong"