I'm spending the week in Denver at the site of the Democratic National Convention, along with several other Common Cause staff. We're helping to lead a full day on media and democracy issues at the Big Tent, home of bloggers, independent media, and other activists, which you can view through a live web feed.
We'll also be watch dogging the many lavish parties to see who's trying to buy access and influence with lawmakers, and contributing to the Party Time blog of the Sunlight Foundation. We'll be urging candidates to sign the Voters First Pledge for public financing of elections and to Recapture the Flag by committing to restore the rule of law and the Constitution.
Keep an eye out here for updates from Denver. Here's one to start off, with a quick look back to a week ago.
Last week, a billionaire named Tom Golisano wrote a $1 million check to the Denver "Host Committee." This got some attention because of the size of the check; what it highlights is a widespread loopholes that allow wealthy individuals and especially large interest groups to purchase access and influence with political heavy hitters.
How does it work? Take a look at this two page fact sheet we put together to sum up the convention loopholes. For instance, the Host Committee loopholes is wide enough to fit several multinational corporations:
Soft money banned by the McCain-Feingold law remains the coin of the realm at the party conventions. The Host Committees and convention planners for the Democratic convention in Denver are asking for the top-level contributors to give $1 million or more, and their counterparts at the Republican convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul are asking for $5 million or more, offering "packages" of access in return.
And the parties for lawmakers will be nonstop:
Denver - At the Democratic convention in Denver, the telecom interests will be out in force, with Qwest Communications hosting multiple events at the swanky Palettes Restaurant at the Denver Art Museum and US Telecom sponsoring an evening concert. Financial interests VISA and US Bank will host a reception for the Freshmen Class and the financial industry will host an "FSR Literacy" luncheon.
Minneapolis-St. Paul - At the Republican convention in Minneapolis-St. Paul, the National Association of Realtors will host a luncheon on affordable housing, while Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the National Association of Home Builders have a scheduled session on "Building Stable Communities for America's Future." Freddie Mac reportedly pulled out of both conventions, however, amid the recent deepening of the home foreclosure crisis - a likely nod to the lawmakers who would not want to be seen at a lavish event sponsored by the mortgage giant while so many of their constituents face foreclosure. AstraZeneca will hold a luncheon. Citibank and Anheuser Busch are both sponsoring the "hospitality space" at the RNC. The list goes on.
The conventions are, in many ways, great moments for our democracy, when millions of supporters from all directions focus their energy on the ways to move our country forward.
But one thing's for sure - some voices remain louder than others, and money still talks. The conventions present a stirring example of that long-held political truism, too. Let us know your thoughts and we'll do our best to stop in with updates on how things look from the ground.
