Political Contribution

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court has agreed to go beyond its controversial Citizens United decision and consider striking down the limit on the total amount that wealthy persons may give to candidates and political parties. The justices voted to hear an appeal from an Alabama donor and the Republican National Committee, which contends the total contribution limit of $123,200 per election cycle is "unconstitutionally low. " The case, to be heard in the fall, will focus on a little-known part of the campaign finance laws that set a total limit on contributions by individuals.

The Supreme Court long ago established that Americans have a 1st Amendment right to spend unlimited amounts on behalf of a political candidate as long as the money is spent independently - and not given directly to or coordinated with the candidate's campaign. But even as the court has upheld limitless independent spending, it has also repeatedly acknowledged Congress' authority to set limits on direct contributions to political campaigns. Now, in an ominous sign that that distinction may soon fall by the wayside, the court has agreed to hear a constitutional challenge to the long-standing federal limits on the total amount an individual may donate to candidates and political committees during an election cycle.

More than 40 municipal bond underwriting firms have endorsed a self-imposed ban on political contributions as a way of avoiding possible conflicts of interest and allegations of influence peddling. Nineteen of the firms met in New York on Wednesday with Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Arthur Levitt Jr. to spell out how the initiative will be implemented.

WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court has agreed to go beyond its controversial Citizens United decision and consider striking down the limit on the total amount that wealthy persons may give to candidates and political parties. The justices voted to hear an appeal from an Alabama donor and the Republican National Committee, which contends the total contribution limit of $123,200 per election cycle is "unconstitutionally low. " The case, to be heard in the fall, will focus on a little-known part of the campaign finance laws that set a total limit on contributions by individuals.

State officials canceled a $460,000 contract with an Oakland day care center after former employees reported that administrators used public funds to pay personal expenses and make a political contribution. Beebe Children's Center Inc. committed the abuses over a five-year period, Department of Education officials charged. Most of the 120 children cared for at the center come from low-income families.

Marriott Corp. on Friday paid $4,000 in civil penalties to settle a lawsuit filed against the firm by Los Angeles City Atty. James K. Hahn for allegedly making illegal contributions to Mayor Tom Bradley's 1989 reelection campaign committee. The Superior Court lawsuit, which had sought $14,500 in penalties, alleged that the hotel and food-service corporation had made donations exceeding the city's $1,000 political contribution limit. Hahn said that Marriott donated $1,000 to Bradley in 1987.

The Marriott Corp. and two executives were sued Tuesday by Los Angeles City Atty. James K. Hahn for allegedly making illegal contributions to Mayor Tom Bradley's 1989 reelection campaign. The Superior Court lawsuit, an outgrowth of a recently completed city audit of Bradley's political funds, seeks $14,500 in penalties. It alleges that the huge hotel and food service corporation made improper donations and exceeded the city's $1,000 political contribution limit.

WASHINGTON -- Liberal philanthropist and financial guru George Soros is donating $1 million to American Bridge 21st Century, a “super PAC” that serves as a opposition research clearinghouse for pro-Democratic groups, his spokesman announced Monday evening. Soros' donation, first reported by the New York Times , is his first major political contribution of the 2012 cycle. He gave $175,000 last year to super PACs backing Democratic congressional candidates. Soros, whose worth is estimated at $22 billion by Forbes, is one of the most sought-after donors on the left.

Re "Prop. 32's real purpose," Column, Oct. 18 George Skelton calls Proposition 32, which would prohibit unions from making payroll deductions to raise money for political spending, a "self-serving sham. " So should we continue to allow teachers unions to force their members to donate to their leaders' favorite political causes? Why must my wife, a first-grade teacher, contribute to political causes she doesn't like? How would Skelton feel if The Times effectively forced him to support Mitt Romney via a paycheck deduction?

From its formation in 2004, it always seemed more than a bit incongruous that the tea party political group FreedomWorks chose as its chairman one of the erstwhile top power players from the halls of Congress. Nothing Dick Armey did in eight years changed that perception, including the way he exited Washington-based FreedomWorks -- with an $8-million payout, according to the Associated Press, the kind of platinum parachute available only to the canniest and coziest of the capital's inside players.

From its formation in 2004, it always seemed more than a bit incongruous that the tea party political group FreedomWorks chose as its chairman one of the erstwhile top power players from the halls of Congress. Nothing Dick Armey did in eight years changed that perception, including the way he exited Washington-based FreedomWorks -- with an $8-million payout, according to the Associated Press, the kind of platinum parachute available only to the canniest and coziest of the capital's inside players.

Re "Prop. 32's real purpose," Column, Oct. 18 George Skelton calls Proposition 32, which would prohibit unions from making payroll deductions to raise money for political spending, a "self-serving sham. " So should we continue to allow teachers unions to force their members to donate to their leaders' favorite political causes? Why must my wife, a first-grade teacher, contribute to political causes she doesn't like? How would Skelton feel if The Times effectively forced him to support Mitt Romney via a paycheck deduction?

SACRAMENTO - California voters appear poised to reject a November ballot measure that would ban political contributions by payroll deduction, according to a new USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times poll. Forty-four percent of those surveyed said they opposed Proposition 32, which would eliminate the main fundraising tool of unions. Just 36% said they supported the measure, which would also bar corporations and unions from contributing directly to candidates. Proponents of the measure, having focused squarely on unions in two past attempts to end paycheck deductions for political purposes, adopted the language of the Occupy Wall Street movement this time around and rebranded their campaign as an effort to curb the power of special interests.

WASHINGTON -- Liberal philanthropist and financial guru George Soros is donating $1 million to American Bridge 21st Century, a “super PAC” that serves as a opposition research clearinghouse for pro-Democratic groups, his spokesman announced Monday evening. Soros' donation, first reported by the New York Times , is his first major political contribution of the 2012 cycle. He gave $175,000 last year to super PACs backing Democratic congressional candidates. Soros, whose worth is estimated at $22 billion by Forbes, is one of the most sought-after donors on the left.

John Duran likes shopping at Target, but he hasn't walked through its doors since last summer. As a gay public official, Duran believes he must support a boycott against the retailer by gay rights activists. "I am one of those people now that no longer shops at Target," said Duran, West Hollywood's mayor pro tem. "I just can't in good conscience be seen there. " Real estate agent Tom Kraynak also stayed away from the retail chain — for a while. But he was among several gay shoppers at the West Hollywood Target recently who said it was time to move on. "We boycotted for a while," said Kraynak, 47. "But that only lasted for so long because we had to go to Target.

Through the depths of the recession, major Wall Street banks and other financial institutions spent nearly $70 million in California to try to defeat or water down California legislation aimed at slowing real estate foreclosures. The money, spent on lobbying fees and political contributions, came from 2007 to 2010 — at the same time the banks were getting billions of dollars in federal taxpayer bailouts to keep them from collapsing. A report commissioned by the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment criticized the banks and mortgage lenders for spending the money in the political arena rather than working harder to keep people in their homes.

An employee of a Tarzana medical firm said Thursday that she had been reimbursed for at least one political contribution by a former top aide at the Los Angeles Marathon, where workers are the focus of an investigation into alleged political money laundering . Jacquie C. Wilkinson, the head of contracting for Medical Management Alliance Inc., told The Times she was reimbursed for a campaign donation at least once--and probably twice--in recent years by George A.

A month after taking office in January, freshman Rep. Jay C. Kim (R-Diamond Bar) stepped up to the microphone in the House of Representatives, denounced the "arrogant attitude" of his congressional colleagues and called for stricter limits on campaign financing. A few weeks later, records show, Kim's engineering corporation issued a $500 check reimbursing a company official for a personal campaign contribution she made to U.S. Sen. Phil Gramm (R-Texas).

A federal judge on Tuesday turned down the request of a political committee with close ties to the Department of Water and Power employee unions that sought to bar the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission from enforcing a campaign contribution limit. The group, Working Californians, said the law was preventing it from making independent expenditures for Los Angeles City Council candidate Christine Essel in her Dec. 8 runoff against Assemblyman Paul Krekorian (D-Los Angeles). Independent groups have spent more than $542,000 on Essel's campaign for the San Fernando Valley seat of former Councilwoman Wendy Greuel, who is now city controller.

Ross Johnson represented Orange County in the Legislature for 26 years, and one of the chief accomplishments of his tenure was to get voters to roll back strict campaign contribution limits. His vehicle was a ballot measure that pretended to promise tough limits but actually loosened them. Now, from his vantage point as chairman of the Fair Political Practices Commission -- the state's campaign watchdog -- things look different to Johnson. And he has a message for Californians: He's sorry.