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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Big Texas Green Flowing into Illinois Campaign

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Friday, October 29, 2010   

CHICAGO - Unlike water, campaign dollars can flow upstream - from the Gulf of Mexico up to Illinois - just like the millions of dollars that have flowed from one wealthy Texas real estate magnate into ads taking aim at Gov. Pat Quinn and other Democrats nationwide. His name is Bob Perry, and he was a driving force behind the "swift boat" campaign against John Kerry in 2004. This year, thanks to the Supreme Court decision that opened the door to nearly unlimited campaign contributions, he has given about $7 million to Karl Rove's political organizations and other groups supporting people like Quinn's opponent, Bill Brady.

Jesse Zwick of the Washington "Independent" has covered Perry's political activism.

"Seven million dollars can definitely go a long way putting up ads in a state. That would almost be the advertising budget of a really strong, seven-week campaign in a state."

Zwick says the groups behind much of this season's campaign advertising usually present themselves as representing a broad-based group of voters, but he has found that often is not the case.

"A donation from someone like Mr. Perry shows that a lot of groups can advocate that kind of support while in fact actually receiving its support from a very relatively small number of donors."

He also notes that while the "swift boat" group was cited by the Federal Election Commission for not properly registering and collecting donations, the Supreme Court "Citizens United" decision means that big smear campaigns largely funded by a few individuals or corporations are now totally legitimate.







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