Tag: Congressional Leadership Fund

How a super PAC helped House Republicans survive the ‘green wave’

Congressional Leadership Fund spent more than $140 million as GOP beat expectations

Unlike in 2018, this year’s “green wave” of Democratic money didn’t produce a “blue wave” of victories, thanks in part to a super PAC that helped Republicans close the spending gap. 

Congressional Leadership Fund, a group aligned with House GOP leadership, spent more than $140 million, a record for the most money a House-focused super PAC has spent in an election cycle and narrowly outspending its Democratic counterpart, House Majority PAC. In some races, CLF carried the bulk of the GOP’s ad spending.

Ballots are still being counted in several competitive races, but as of Tuesday evening, no House Republican has lost reelection, and the GOP has netted six House seats. Continue reading.

The Fact Checker’s crash course for the 2018 elections

NOTE:  CLF, the Paul Ryan aligned super PAC has been busy with nasty ads in Minnesota, too.  With multiple ads in CD3, among other CDs. We’ve noted they’re false and provided information on this group before.  Here’s what a journalist charged with fact checking has to say about their style of ads.


A super PAC aligned with House Speaker Paul Ryan produced six ads in tight house races that are littered with falsehoods. (Meg Kelly/The Washington Post)

All 47 of our fact checks that dealt with candidates or campaign ads in 2018 are now in one place — right here.

Yes, it’s a wonder we still have time to fact-check politicians not named Donald Trump, he of the 6,420 false or misleading claims. But it’s not just the president who is flooding the airwaves with misinformation. The 2018 campaign season has featured a bunch of Trump-like TV ads, nativist rhetoric and scurrilous statistics from candidates, super PACs and other groups.

Of the 47 fact checks, 21 received Four Pinocchios. Twelve got Three Pinocchios, and seven got Two Pinocchios. We threw in two fact checks that got One Pinocchio and five with no ratings.

View the complete November 5 article by Salvador Rizzo on the Washington Post website here.

Paulsen, NRCC, CLF Ignore Public Shaming, Double Down on Lies

Paulsen’s coordinated smear campaign reaches an unprecedented low as he ignores requests from survivors to stop who demand better

Excelsior, MN – Erik Paulsen’s desperate and disgraceful coordinated smear campaign against Dean Phillips reached new lows this week when the Congressional Leadership Fund (CLF), Paulsen for Congress and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) released new coordinated ads featuring claims that have drawn extraordinary blowback from one of the Twin Cities’ most important health providers, prominent Republicans, community and business leaders, and the sexual assault and harassment survivors Paulsen is using as political pawns.

The women, represented by attorney Lori Peterson, recently called on Paulsen to take down his ad and apologize for exploiting their trauma and drawing them into a political attack based on a lie. Instead, Paulsen and his special interests patrons are doubling down.

“This is the most vile, offensive and objectively untruthful campaign ever conducted in Minnesota, and Erik Paulsen is to blame,” said Zach Rodvold, campaign manager for Phillips for Congress. “In Congressman Paulsen’s desperation to hold onto power, he’s shown that he is willing to do and say anything to win, even forcing survivors of sexual assault and harassment to relive their trauma for his own personal gain. Those women have joined with Republicans, business and community leaders and people across the district in calling on Paulsen to take his ads down and apologize. That’s exactly what he should do.” Continue reading “Paulsen, NRCC, CLF Ignore Public Shaming, Double Down on Lies”

So, you saw a nasty ad …

As you may have noticed, Erik Paulsen and his special interest patrons are spending millions of dollars to flood the airwaves with negative attack ads again Dean Phillips. You might have questions, and Dean and his campaign team were happy to shed light on the truth:

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Dean Phillips is running a people-powered campaign because he believes that our politics are broken — and these kind of ads are part of the problem. Dean has taken $0 from PACs, lobbyists or members of Congress; instead, 64,000 individuals have contributed to the campaign, at an average donation of us $32. Change is coming, and everyone’s invited!

 

Paulsen, super PAC teamed up to tear Phillips down with lies

To the Editor:

Here we are, about two months away from midterm election day and the voters of Minnesota’s Third District are on the edge of their seats. We are paying attention to our candidates and determining who will be the best representatives of our interests. But instead of seeing incumbent Erik Paulsen put his best foot forward, we see attack advertisements, special interest money and smear politics.

This has to end. The Congressional Leadership Fund Super PAC and Erik Paulsen have teamed up to try to tear down Dean Phillips’ reputation with lies. Is that how campaigns should run? It’s incredibly misleading and quite honestly annoying. I don’t want our candidates filling the voters’ minds with falsehoods. Let’s provide facts only, please.

Here are some facts: Dean Phillips is a business owner who is passionate about getting money out of politics, saving the environment, making health care accessible to all and much more. He is being attacked for not providing health care to his employees at Penny’s, but he does, in fact, provide for all full-time employees. Continue reading “Paulsen, super PAC teamed up to tear Phillips down with lies”

Advertising totals reveal parties’ positioning in battle for House

Republicans and Democrats are taking starkly different approaches to advertising as they race to win control of the U.S. House, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post.

Many Republicans are looking to outside money to lift them in the airtime wars, and the House GOP’s allied super PAC, the Congressional Leadership Fund, has been this cycle’s dominant spender on television and radio, the documents show.

House Democrats are following a more traditional route. Their campaign arm, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, is outpacing both its allied super PAC, the House Majority PAC, and its rival, the National Republican Congressional Committee — but lags behind the cash-flush GOP super PAC.

View the complete September 16 article by Robert Costa on the Washington Post website here.

Don’t be Fooled: The Truth About the Alphabet Soup at the End of Those Attack Ads

We’re sure you’ve been been seeing the mudslinging ads attacking Dean Phillips by massively distorting the fact and using quotes out of context.  There’s always “legalese” at the end of those ads.  Most people don’t know what those organizations are.

Here are the Facts

These ads are coming from people who are doing everything they can to protect Erik Paulsen’s seat in Congress.  They’re doing that to make certain they control what happens in Congress after the election be it another tax cut for the rich, attack on our health care, moving to dismantle Social Security and Medicare “because the deficit is out of hand”* and so much more.

Rep. Erik Paulsen — We find it interesting that after holding his seat since the 2008 election, Erik Paulsen has nothing positive to say about what he’s done for his constituents, which only leaves him the option of parroting the falsehoods of the PACs supporting his re-election.

CLR (Congressional Leadership Fund) — This Super PAC is the dishonest organization that released the CIA confidential security clearance application of a DFL candidate in Virginia to use for political purposes.  It was formed in 2011 and is closely aligned to House Speaker Paul Ryan.  Their purpose is to elect Republicans and do what they can to oppose the election of Democrats.

NRCC (National Republican Congressional Committee) — This is an organization that supports the election of Republicans to the U.S. House of Representatives. Its leadership is made up of Republican Representatives..

Open Secrets’ Report of 2018 Expenditures:  https://www.opensecrets.org/races/election?id=MN

Washington Post post of media money reserving spots:  https://www.washingtonpost.com/r/2010-2019/WashingtonPost/2018/09/16/National-Politics/Graphics/tracking912_18.pdf?tid=a_inl_manual

MPR News:  Who is Spending in Your District? (Updated daily):  https://features.mprnews.org/2018/campaign-spending/#

Open Secrets Listing of Paulsen Independent Expenditures this Cycle:  https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/other-data?cid=N00029391&cycle=2018#ind

*  There are theories out there that this tax cut (it wasn’t a rework of the tax code and benefits for average Americans go away in 5 years) has cut the income coming into the Treasury and exploding the debt. That will allow a Republican majority in Congress to do away with social service programs because they can’t be paid for — because they cut the taxes of the richest American and corporations.

 

Postal Service Investigating Release of Brat Challenger’s Security Clearance Form

The following article by Griffin Connolly was posted on the Roll Call website September 10, 2018:

Virginia’s 7th District seat is expected to be a close contest between Brat and Democrat Abigail Spanberger

Former CIA officer and Virginia Democrat Abigail Spanberger accused Congressional Leadership Fund, the super PAC linked to Speaker Paul D. Ryan, of “trafficking in possibly illegally obtained documents” after it obtained her security clearance application through a Freedom of Information Act request. Credit: Steve Helber, AP file photo

The U.S. Postal Service inspector general has launched an investigation into the improper release of U.S. congressional candidate Abigail Spanberger’s full, unredacted official personnel file, including a highly confidential national security form known as Standard Form 86.

USPS public relations manager David Partenheimer previously said the USPS was looking into how America Rising, a conservative opposition research group, had obtained the Democratic candidate and former CIA officer’s SF-86, and was still conducting a review, but that the lapse occurred “because of human error” at the postal service.

But the OIG’s Office of Investigations has launched an official investigation into the USPS’ release of Spanberger’s full file, along with the release of at least three other current or former employees’ full files, Roll Call has learned.

View the complete article here.

Booker Orders Release of Kavanaugh-Related Email in ‘Act of Disobedience’

The following article by John T. Bennett was posted on the Roll Call website Septem

Sen. Booker dares Sen. Cornyn to start process to remove him from Senate

Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., made a splash Thursday during the third day of Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court nomination hearing. Credit: Bill Clark, CQ Roll Call

The third day of Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court confirmation hearing began with fireworks: A senator dared another to try to kick him out of the Senate.

Potential 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Cory Bookerof New Jersey and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas jousted at the Thursday session’s start over the process by which the Judiciary Committee, National Archives, Justice Department and former President George W. Bush’s legal staff have been reviewing and clearing or withholding documents from Kavanaugh’s time working for the 43rd president.

Booker announced he had ordered his staff to release an email before it has gone through that process, saying he was knowingly violating a Senate rule that could lead to his removal from the chamber.

View the complete article here.