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Super PACS “represent much of what is wrong with American democracy rolled neatly into one package,” said Marites Velasquez of Illinois PIRG, announcing a new report showing that fundraising monsters suddenly dominating our elections are funded by a very small number of very rich people.
In the media
Curtis Black
Last I checked, the whole point of a reduced payroll tax was to stimulate growth by keeping more money in the economy as opposed to channeling it into the coffers of the U.S. Treasury.
Blog
David Callahan

The Rise of Super PACs and the 2012 Election

Research
Adam Lioz
Blair Bowie
Six out of the top 10 fundraising super PACs have received untraceable donations. In total, 20 percent of super PACs received untraceable donations in 2011. A study entitled "Auctioning Democracy" also found that the super rich give a large amount of the funding received by super PACs. This skews
In the media
Liz Kaczke
Americans don't need more reasons to distrust Congress these days, with polls showing record levels of public disapproval of the legislative branch. Yet the reasons keep coming -- like the fact, as I wrote yesterday, that so many lawmakers and congressional staffers morph into highly paid lobbbyists
Blog
David Callahan
It’s no secret that super PACs skew toward the wealthy set. However, a new study from Demos (editor's note: Demos is The American Prospect's publishing partner) and U.S. PIRG highlights how few people are running the money game this election cycle and how secret some of their contributions can be.
In the media
Jaime Fuller
Today Illinois PIRG Education Fund and Demos released a new analysis of the funding sources for the campaign finance behemoths, Super PACs. The findings confirmed what many have predicted in the wake of the Supreme Court's damaging Citizens United decision: since their inception in 2010, Super PACs
In the media
An excellent series here on PolicyShop details how corporate money corrupts our political system and erodes democracy, particularly in the wake of the Citizens United ruling.
Blog
J. Mijin Cha
Super PACs raised about $181 million in the last two years — with roughly half of it coming from fewer than 200 super-rich people.
In the media
Kenneth P. Vogel
Abby Phillip
In a new report, called Auctioning Democracy: The Rise of Super PACs and the 2012 Elections, we take a comprehensive look at Super PAC fundraising -- from their advent in the wake of 2010's Citizens United Supreme Court decision through 2011 Federal Election Commission year-end filings.
In the media