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Oil and Gas Industry Investments in the National Rifle Association and Safari Club International Reshaping American Energy, Land, and Wildlife Policy
JOE RIIS JOE Oil and Gas Industry Investments in the National Rifle Association and Safari Club International Reshaping American Energy, Land, and Wildlife Policy By Matt Lee-Ashley April 2014 WWW.AMERICANPROGRESS.ORG Oil and Gas Industry Investments in the National Rifle Association and Safari Club International Reshaping American Energy, Land, and Wildlife Policy By Matt Lee-Ashley April 2014 Contents 1 Introduction and summary 3 Oil and gas industry investments in three major sportsmen groups 5 Safari Club International 9 The National Rifle Association 11 Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation 13 Impact of influence: How the oil and gas industry’s investments are paying off 14 Threats to endangered and threatened wildlife in oil- and gas-producing regions 19 Threats to the backcountry 22 Threats to public access and ownership 25 Conclusion 27 About the author and acknowledgments 28 Endnotes Introduction and summary Two bedrock principles have guided the work and advocacy of American sports- men for more than a century. First, under the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation, wildlife in the United States is considered a public good to be conserved for everyone and accessible to everyone, not a commodity that can be bought and owned by the highest bidder.1 Second, since President Theodore Roosevelt’s creation of the first wildlife refuges and national forests, sportsmen have fought to protect wildlife habitat from development and fragmentation to ensure healthy game supplies. These two principles, however, are coming under growing fire from an aggressive and coordinated campaign funded by the oil and gas industry. As part of a major effort since 2008 to bolster its lobbying and political power, the oil and gas industry has steadily expanded its contributions and influ- ence over several major conservative sportsmen’s organizations, including Safari Club International, or SCI, the National Rifle Association, or NRA, and the Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation. -
HARD, SOFT and DARK MONEY Introduction Early Political Scandals
HARD, SOFT AND DARK MONEY Introduction Early political scandals involved money used for bribery or buying votes. Modern day scandals involve the appearances of corruption depending where gifts and campaign money came from. The U.S. Supreme Court has made a number of controversial decisions expanding the amounts of money in politics by characterizing political donations and expenditures to be exercises of freedom of speech. Among other results, those decisions have created a large and growing category of election related donations and contributions called “dark money.” Important Terms Defined Terms relating to money in politics that are used in this paper have definitions more exactly set out by law. These terms are fully addressed in the MIP paper Definitions for Money in Politics, Disclosure Requirements for PACs The relationships of PACs to their disclosure requirements are shown in the chart below. May Funding Disclosure Donations coordinate Corporations Sources required limited with can donate candidate Political parties PAC’s Super Pac’s 527’s 501(c)’s Dark Money Twenty-nine types of corporations are listed in §501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) as qualified for nonprofit status. Social Welfare Organizations under §501(c) (4), Labor Unions under §501(c)(5), and Trade Associations under §501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code are not required to report from whom they get their donations. Hence these donations are referred to as dark money. Since social welfare or business interests often intersect with political issues, these groups are allowed to use funds to influence elections, but there is otherwise no dollar limit on how much that can be, and they only need to report the majority of their expenditures in general terms. -
Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, DC 20554
Before the FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION Washington, DC 20554 Complaint of ) ) Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, and ) Sunlight Foundation ) ) Against ) ) Hearst Properties, Inc., licensee of WISN-TV, ) Milwaukee, Wisconsin ) ) For Violations of the Communications Act ) §317 and FCC Rule 47 CFR §73.1212 ) To: Media Bureau COMPLAINT The Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, and Sunlight Foundation1 file this complaint regarding violations of the Communications Act and the Federal Communications Commission’s (“FCC”) regulations by Hearst Properties, Inc., licensee of WISN-TV. WISN-TV is an ABC broadcast television station in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In November 2015, WISN-TV aired political advertisements identified as paid for by Independence USA PAC (“Independence”). Despite the fact that even a cursory search of the public record would have shown that Michael Bloomberg is the sole funder of Independence USA PAC, WISN-TV did not identify Michael Bloomberg as the sponsor of the advertisements or, evidently, make inquiry of Independence USA of its sources of funding, and instead identified the sponsor of the ads as “Independence USA PAC.” On November 19, 2015, while the advertisements were still running on WISN-TV, Complainants provided evidence directly to WISN-TV establishing that Independence USA PAC 1 Descriptions of these organizations can be found in Exhibit A. was not the ad’s true sponsor.2 Specifically, Complainants provided evidence that Michael Bloomberg has provided 100 per cent of Independence’s funding since its creation. -
Impeachment of President Donald John Trump The
1 116TH CONGRESS " ! DOCUMENT 2d Session HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 116–95 IMPEACHMENT OF PRESIDENT DONALD JOHN TRUMP THE EVIDENTIARY RECORD PURSUANT TO H. RES. 798 VOLUME XI, PART 7 Historic Materials Printed at the direction of Cheryl L. Johnson, Clerk of the House of Representatives, pursuant to H. Res. 798, 116th Cong., 2nd Sess. (2020) JANUARY 23, 2020.—Ordered to be printed U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE 39–530 WASHINGTON : 2020 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:15 Jan 24, 2020 Jkt 039530 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5012 Sfmt 5012 E:\HR\OC\HD095P29.XXX HD095P29 lotter on DSKBCFDHB2PROD with REPORTS E:\Seals\Congress.#13 COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY JERROLD NADLER, New York, Chairman ZOE LOFGREN, California DOUG COLLINS, Georgia, Ranking Member SHEILA JACKSON LEE, Texas F. JAMES SENSENBRENNER, JR., STEVE COHEN, Tennessee Wisconsin HENRY C. ‘‘HANK’’ JOHNSON, JR., Georgia STEVE CHABOT, Ohio THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida LOUIE GOHMERT, Texas KAREN BASS, California JIM JORDAN, Ohio CEDRIC L. RICHMOND, Louisiana KEN BUCK, Colorado HAKEEM S. JEFFRIES, New York JOHN RATCLIFFE, Texas DAVID N. CICILLINE, Rhode Island MARTHA ROBY, Alabama ERIC SWALWELL, California MATT GAETZ, Florida TED LIEU, California MIKE JOHNSON, Louisiana JAMIE RASKIN, Maryland ANDY BIGGS, Arizona PRAMILA JAYAPAL, Washington TOM MCCLINTOCK, California VAL BUTLER DEMINGS, Florida DEBBIE LESKO, Arizona J. LUIS CORREA, California GUY RESCHENTHALER, Pennsylvania MARY GAY SCANLON, Pennsylvania, BEN CLINE, Virginia Vice-Chair KELLY ARMSTRONG, North Dakota SYLVIA R. GARCIA, Texas W. GREGORY STEUBE, -
GEORGETOWN LAW INSTITUTE for PUBLIC REPRESENTATION Directors 600 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Suite 312 Hope M
GEORGETOWN LAW INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC REPRESENTATION Directors 600 New Jersey Avenue, NW, Suite 312 Hope M. Babcock Washington, DC 20001-2075 Angela J. Campbell Telephone: 202-662-9535 Michael T. Kirkpatrick Fax: 202-662-9634 Benton Senior Counselor Andrew Jay Schwartzman Staff Attorneys Meghan M. Boone Justin Gundlach Daniel H. Lutz* Aaron Mackey July 6, 2015 Cathy Williams Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, SW Washington, DC 20554 via email to [email protected] and [email protected] RE:` Information Collection regarding Local Public Inspection Files and Political Files OMB Control Number 3060-0215 Dear Ms. Williams, The Campaign Legal Center, Sunlight Foundation, and Common Cause (“CLC et al.”) are writing to strongly support the continued collection of information under FCC Rules 47 CFR §§ 73.3526 and 73.3527 (local public inspection files) and §76.1701 and §73 1943 (political files). They also offer some suggestions to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected. The information in the public inspection file is necessary for the Commission to carry out its public interest responsibilities The Notice correctly states that the public and FCC use public file information to evaluate licensee performance, ensure that broadcast stations address issues of concern to their communities of license, and ensure that stations comply with Commission policies concerning licensee control. 80 Fed. Reg. 26048 (May 6, 2015). To serve these functions, it is essential that the public have access to the information in the public files. Requiring television stations to make their public inspection files available online has greatly improved public access. -
Melanie Sloan, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
Melanie Sloan, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington Melanie Sloan serves as CREW's Executive Director and is a nationally recognized expert on congressional ethics. Prior to starting CREW, she served as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Columbia where, from 1998-2003, she successfully tried cases before dozens of judges and juries. Before becoming a prosecutor, Ms. Sloan served as Minority Counsel for the House Judiciary Committee, working on criminal justice issues for Ranking Member John Conyers (D-MI). Ms. Sloan also served as Counsel to the Crime Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee, chaired by then-Representative Charles Schumer (D-NY). There, she drafted portions of the 1994 Crime Bill, including the Violence Against Women Act. In 1993, Ms. Sloan served as Nominations Counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, under then-Chairman Joseph Biden (D-DE). Prior to working for the Congress, she was an associate at Howrey and Simon in Washington D.C. Ms. Sloan received her B.A. and J.D. from the University of Chicago and has published in the Yale Law and Policy Review, and numerous other publications. Frequently called upon by national news programs to provide analysis, Ms. Sloan has appeared on shows including: NPR's All Things Considered and Morning Edition; CNN's The Situation Room, Piers Morgan Tonight and Anderson Cooper 360; MSNBC's Hardball, The Rachel Maddow Show, The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell, The Ed Show and The Dylan Ratigan Show; Fox News' Special Report with Bret Baier; NBC Nightly News; CBS Evening News; and ABC World News. -
Democracy and the NATO Alliance: Upholding Our Shared Democratic Values”
Prepared Statement for the Record “Democracy and the NATO Alliance: Upholding our Shared Democratic Values” Susan Corke Senior Fellow, German Marshall Fund and Director of Transatlantic Democracy Working Group House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, Energy, and the Environment U.S. House of Representatives November 13, 2019 Chairman Keating, Ranking Member Kinzinger, Distinguished Members of this Committee, thank you for holding this hearing and inviting me to testify before you on an issue that I believe is fundamental to American security and to our role as a leader of the democratic community of nations. It is a particular honor to be here today because Representatives Keating and Kinzinger have been two of the most principled voices in calling for a reinvigoration of democracy and the NATO Alliance as we contend with an era of authoritarian resurgence. On May 8th they both spoke powerfully at an event hosted by German Marshall Fund and the Transatlantic Democracy Working Group on the need to continue fighting for freedom and the ideals we value most, emphasizing this is in America’s interest. Representative Keating asked a pointed question this event, “What do we have that Russia and China don’t have? A coalition, NATO, that has resulted in 70 years of prosperity and peace.” This year is NATO’s 75th birthday and the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall; these anniversaries could have marked the success of the transatlantic project and the triumph of democracy. Instead, it is clear that after seven decades as the world’s preeminent military alliance, NATO’s future is in danger, facing urgent challenges that require immediate attention, including a recommitment to democratic values as a foundation of our security. -
Delegate Research Information
MSC 65th Student Conference on National Affairs Texas A&M University Delegate Research Information Round Table Modern Monopolies: The Influence of Mega-Corporations Facilitator: Casey Fleming ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This delegate research information is not intended to be a comprehensive assessment of your assigned round table topic, but rather a starting point to help launch your own personal investigations into the various associated issues. It is encouraged, if not expected, that your policy proposals will be inclusive of aspects pertaining to your round table topic that are not covered in this research compilation. You, your facilitator, your round table host, and your fellow roundtable delegates are all responsible for crafting a policy proposal that takes this into consideration. Terms & Actors Terms Bureaucracy - agencies made by the federal government to help enforce laws made. Most direct source of corruption from corporations. Citizens United vs. Federal Election Committee- landmark Case settled in 2010 by the Supreme Court that overturned certain long-standing restrictions on political fundraising and spending. Federal Campaign Act - passed in 1971, this law is the primary source of regulation concerning political fundraising and spending. Later amendments would go on to establish the Federal Election Committee (FEC). Lobbying- communicating with a public official for the purpose of influencing the passage, defeat, amendment, or postponement of legislative or executive action. Megacorporation- a large collection of companies owned by a single parent company. Shadowban - when an individual(s)’ content isn’t shown to the public despite not being officially “banned” by the network. Actors “Big Oil” - the supermajors are considered to be BP, Chevron Corporation, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Total and Eni (and sometimes ConocoPhillips). -
519-7180 Fax (703) 519-7190
DEMOCRACY-2018/09/17 1 THE BROOKINGS INSTITUTION WILL DEMOCRACY WIN? THE RECURRING BATTLE BETWEEN LIBERALISM AND ITS ADVERSARIES Washington, D.C. Monday, September 17, 2018 Opening Remarks JOHN R. ALLEN President, The Brookings Institution Panel 1 STEVE INSKEEP, Moderator Host, “Morning Edition,” NPR NORMAN EISEN Senior Fellow, Governance Studies, The Brookings Institution ROBERT KAGAN Stephen & Barbara Friedman Senior Fellow, Project on International Order and Strategy The Brookings Institution Remarks WILLIAM A. GALSTON Ezra K. Zilkha Chair and Senior Fellow, Governance Studies The Brookings Institution Panel 2 LINDA WERTHEIMER, Moderator Senior National Correspondent, NPR CHARLES BLACK, JR. President, Pentad Plus LLC NORMAN EISEN Senior Fellow, Governance Studies, The Brookings Institution MARC ROBINSON Professor of English and Theater Studies, Yale University LAURENE SHERLOCK Owner, Greystone Appraisals LLC ALEXANDER TOUSSAINT Deacon * * * * * ANDERSON COURT REPORTING 500 Montgomery Street, Suite 400 Alexandria, VA 22314 Phone (703) 519-7180 Fax (703) 519-7190 DEMOCRACY-2018/09/17 2 P R O C E E D I N G S GENERAL ALLEN: Ladies and gentlemen, good morning. Welcome to Brookings. I'm John Allen; I'm the president of the Institution. You are most welcome today, and for those coming in by webcast, we welcome you as well. Today we're going to be discussing something concerning many of us at this moment in history. It's the growing tide of illiberalism, as it seems to be threatening increasingly democratic institutions and governments on both sides of the Atlantic. I think it's fair to say that we've learned that democracy is not inevitable and it needs to be understood, it needs to be nurtured, it needs to be cared for, and it needs to be guarded with great vigilance. -
Link to PDF Version
ResolvedDetails - Agency Information Management System Page 1 of 1 AIMS Agency Information Management System Announcement: If you create a duplicate interaction, please contact Gwen Cannon-Jenkins to have it deleted Resolved Interactions Details Reopen Interaction Resolution Details Title: Interaction Resolved:11/30/2016 34 press calls Resolution Category:Resolved Interaction #: 10260 Response: Like everyone else, we were excited this morning to read Status: Resolved the President-elect’s twitter feed indicating that he wants to be free of conflicts of interest. OGE applauds that goal, which is consistent with an opinion OGE issued in 1983. Customer Information Divestiture resolves conflicts of interest in a way that transferring control does not. We don’t know the details of Source: Press Position: their plan, but we are willing and eager to help them with it. The tweets that OGE posted today were responding only First Name: James Email: (b)(6) ' to the public statement that the President-elect made on Last Name: Lipton Phone: his Twitter feed about his plans regarding conflicts of Title: Reporter - NYT Other Notes: This contact is a stand-in interest. OGE’s tweets were not based on any information contact for the 34 separate news about the President-elect’s plans beyond what was shared organizations who contacted us and who on his Twitter feed. OGE is non-partisan and does not received our statement on the issue. endorse any individual. https://twitter.com/OfficeGovEthics Complexity( Amount Of Time Spent On Interaction:More than 8 Interaction Details hours Initiated: 11/30/2016 Individuals Credited:Leigh Francis, Seth Jaffe Call Origination: Phone Add To Agency Profile: No Assigned: Seth Jaffe Memorialize Content: No Watching: Do Not Destroy: No Questions We received inquires from 34 separate news organizations concerning tweets from OGE's twitter account addressing the President-elect's plans to avoid conflicts of interest. -
Voting Margaret E
Voting Margaret E. Heggan Free Public Library You can find books to check out using the following call number range: 324.62 – 324.973 923.2 – 923.8 973.0496 - 973.8 Search the library’s catalog using the following subjects: African Americans--Suffrage Voting Voting Rights Act of 1965. United States Women--Suffrage 1. Go to www.hegganlibrary.org 2. Click Advanced Search. 3. Click the arrow next to words or phrase and select subject. 4. Type in one of the subjects listed above and click Search. The following books are a selection of the larger collection. Ask the librarian for help finding additional books. Voting –Juvenile Voting / Sarah De Capua. Women’s Suffrage / Brenda Stalcup. J 324.63 DEC YA 305.42 WOM Biography Elizabeth Cady Stanton / Lori D. Ginzberg. Susan B. Anthony, a crusader for women's rights / B STANTON, ELIZABETH CADY Barbara Salsini. B ANTHONY, SUSAN B. Voting Rights Act of 1965 Bending toward justice: the Voting Rights Act and Judgment days: Lyndon Baines Johnson, Martin the transformation of American democracy / Gary Luther King, Jr., and the laws that changed May. America / Nick Kotz. 973.0496 MAY 973.923 KOT Reference - Reference books (REF) cannot be checked out. International encyclopedia of women's suffrage. Guide to political campaigns in America. REF 324.623 HAN REF 324.973 GUI Databases The online databases are an excellent resource that can be used in the library or from home. Ask the reference librarian for assistance. Websites New Jersey Voter Information NJ Division of Elections NJ Voter Information Page http://www.njelections.org/ https://voter.njsvrs.com/PublicAccess/jsp/Home.jsp National Voter Information Can I Vote http://www.canivote.org/ Can I Vote was created by the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS). -
Congressional Record United States Th of America PROCEEDINGS and DEBATES of the 112 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION
E PL UR UM IB N U U S Congressional Record United States th of America PROCEEDINGS AND DEBATES OF THE 112 CONGRESS, FIRST SESSION Vol. 157 WASHINGTON, MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2011 No. 190 Senate The Senate met at 2 p.m., and was the State of Delaware, to perform the vacancies because Republicans were in called to order by the Honorable CHRIS- duties of the Chair. the majority in that court. So they TOPHER A. COONS, a Senator from the DANIEL K. INOUYE, wanted to defeat this competent State of Delaware. President pro tempore. woman, and that is what they did with Mr. COONS thereupon assumed the these vacancies still there in that PRAYER chair as Acting President pro tempore. court. The Chaplain, Dr. Barry C. Black, of- f They blocked the nomination of fered the following prayer: Richard Cordray to lead the Consumer RECOGNITION OF THE MAJORITY Let us pray. Financial Protection Bureau, despite LEADER God, our King, You are clothed in his obviously deep qualifications for majesty and strength. Your throne has The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tem- the job. He has a long history of pro- been established from the beginning pore. The majority leader is recog- tecting the middle class against unfair and You existed before time began. nized. practices by financial predators and he Help our lawmakers today to do their f would have been a great asset in our fight to protect Main Street from the work, striving to labor for Your glory. SCHEDULE Give them the purity of life and hon- kind of Wall Street greed that caused esty of purpose to walk in Your way.