Common Cause continues its efforts to hold power accountable.

Abuse of Power: Forging the Path to Recovery

Common Cause hosted a distinguished panel on June 10 to discuss the widespread abuse of power engaged in by the current Administration. The Administration has disregarded the rule of law through over-broad assertions of executive power, abuse of signing statements, and policies that arguably flout the Constitution regarding interrogation, detention, and intelligence gathering. The Congress has repeatedly failed to perform its constitutionally mandated oversight duties in each of these areas.

The panelists were charged with examining these disturbing trends and with considering how best to restore the constitutional constraints that have served our country well since its inception.

This past week's news includes another cause for celebration: Minnesota is now the 38th state with a Common Cause chapter.

Politicizing NASA

Josh Zaharoff posted on June 2 the results of an investigation by the NASA inspector general's office. The inspector general found that political appointees in the space agency's public affairs office worked to control and distort public accounts of its researchers' findings about climate change for at least two years.

From the fall of 2004 through 2006, the report said, NASA's public affairs office "managed the topic of climate change in a manner that reduced, marginalized, or mischaracterized climate change science made available to the general public." It noted elsewhere that "news releases in the areas of climate change suffered from inaccuracy, factual insufficiency, and scientific dilution."

Josh points out that "the reason we have career staff at government agencies is to handle such issues without political interference -- the exact opposite of what's happening now, as this story shows."

Read about this past week's efforts by Common Cause. We have another occasion to celebrate: Common Cause is relaunched in the state of Hawaii.

Federal Elections Commission (FEC): Time to Rethink It

CC President Bob Edgar sent a letter on May 21 to the Senate Committee on Rules and Administration Chair, Senator Dianne Feinstein, to coincide with their meeting to consider the nominations of three candidates to the FEC. He stated that it is time to rethink the FEC. He urged them to take advantage of the opportunity their meeting affords by embarking on a plan to create a new and better designed federal election agency that could enforce the campaign finance laws Congress passes and that would avoid the politicization that has made the current FEC an ineffective and failed agency. CC believes there are models for an FEC that Congress can adopt that will put upholding the nation’s campaign finance laws above party loyalty. One model of other more effective law enforcement agencies, for example, are those agencies headed by a single administrator who is appointed for a fixed term by the President and confirmed by the Senate.

Here's a recap of Common Cause's work over the past two weeks. We're celebrating hard-won victories regarding the FEC and FCC and highlighting other important work throughout the country.

Federal Election Commission (FEC): We Stopped The White House Again!
On May 16 controversial White House nominee Hans von Spakovsky withdrew his name from consideration for a position on the FEC. Common Cause, working with a coalition of voting rights and reform groups, had opposed von Spakovsky because of his work at the Justice Department rolling back voting rights laws.

I know you've all been missing your somewhat regular dose of information on what Common Cause has been working on across the country at the local, state and national level.  Here's the latest edition of the Yellow Memo (as it's known in the CC office - it has been printed on yellow paper for as long as anyone remembers).  Thanks to volunteer Mary Jo Cittadino we've got the memo back up and running.  In future it'll mostly be posted under her name, but I wanted to introduce it this time.  Enjoy! 

House Administration Committee Approve Bills

On April 2 the Committee on House Administration approved two vital measures: The Emergency Assistance for Secure Elections Act of 2008 (HR 5036) will help states safeguard voting machines in November's general election. The Universal Right to Vote By Mail (HR 281) will ease administrative hurdles for voters who wish to vote by absentee ballot. The bill clarifies that voters may request the right to vote by absentee ballot without needing to give an "excuse."

Common Cause has championed both measures since their introduction. In a press release, President Bob Edgar commended "those on the House Administration Committee who voted in support of these measures" and urged "the full House and Senate to follow suit to help ensure voting security and accessibility in November."

More below the fold.