Rove's 'super PAC' helps Rubio in surge (US Senate--Florida)

[seafan]

This is all we need to know ahead of this election:



Karl Rove ha$$$ the math.


First got wind of this yesterday, and Beth Reinhard now reports in the Miami Herald and St. Petersburg Times:


September 30, 2010

A new and powerful "super-PAC" tied to Republican strategist Karl Rove, fueled by out-of-state corporations and billionaires, is swooping into Florida to put its money behind front-runner Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate race.

American Crossroads spent nearly $250,000 so far on pro-Rubio mailings aimed at absentee voters, according to a report filed Tuesday with the Federal Elections Commission. The group can shell out unlimited money on Rubio's behalf, thanks to a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that allows corporations and wealthy individuals to funnel money directly to campaigns.

"This group is really at the forefront of this new phenomenon of super PACs," said Dave Levinthal, a spokesman for the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics, a campaign watchdog group. "We've been saying that the Supreme Court decision would open up a brand-new avenue of money and influence, and we're seeing that very much come true."

American Crossroads is among a number of outside, special interest groups influencing the race for Florida's coveted open Senate seat and helping Rubio erode the fundraising edge held by Gov. Charlie Crist.

.....

American Crossroads raised more than $9.3 million between January and August, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Two of its largest donations came from the oil and gas industry. Rubio is the only candidate in the Senate race who favors expanding offshore oil drilling. Crist was once open to more oil exploration, but changed his position after the BP oil spill.

Another recent donation to American Crossroads came from Daniels Manufacturing Corp., an aircraft and aerospace company based in Orlando that has received millions of dollars in federal contracts.
"I like his politics," president George Daniels said of Rubio. "He's pro-defense, pro-lower taxes and has been that way for a long time, as opposed to the flip-flopping governor."

American Crossroads has spent millions of dollars attacking Democratic candidates. The source of some of its money is a secret because it is affiliated with a nonprofit arm, Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies, that is not required to disclose donors to the IRS.

.....

We've come quite a way since those 'primitive days of 2000' when election theft required merely boots on the ground and a corrupted Congress.





Now we have a monster out of control.





And the criminals still walk free.

[EFerrari]

1. I'd bet money on election fraud in that race.

My tip was different, though. The guy that promulgated the fake New Black Panthers voter intimidation controversy has hearted Rubio on FB.

[flyarm]

2. Rubio scares me as much or more than Rove! eom

[DrDan]

4. agree - and there is only one real way to potentially avoid Senator Rubio

[EFerrari]

6. Rove hates losing so I'm sure there's a plan to steal it if for some reason

people get behind Crist.

I hate to suggest work for other people but I can't work election protection from California very well and I hope someone is thinking about minding minority precincts in this race.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

3. Ah Turd Blossom, only the good die young I guess. nt

[seafan]

5. Jeb Bush's Shadow Government is in full frontal assault on our democracy.

Driving extremist policy is Jeb Bush's specialty. Don't think he's been just coasting since leaving the governor's office in early 2007.


'Formulating policy' (for billionaires to buy elections) is why this shark must keep swimming.



A guide to the ‘shadow GOP’: the groups that may define the 2010 and 2012 elections

American Crossroads: Founded in March by Rove and Gillespie to counter ad spending from liberal outfits like MoveOn.org and labor unions, this 527 group says it plans to raise and spend upwards of $50 million before November. So far, the group is focusing on 11 key Senate races, including Nevada, where the group has run two ads attacking Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. But Collegio says American Crossroads will begin targeting House races closer to Election Day. According to Internal Revenue Service records, the group has raised roughly $8.5 million so far — including $1 million from Dallas energy executive Trevor Rees-Jones.

Crossroads GPS: A spinoff of American Crossroads, this 501-c4 group can keep its donor list private — a major selling point for individuals and corporations who want to anonymously influence elections. While it won't run ads, the group is picking up some of the pricey administrative tasks that the RNC has usually taken on, including building a database that allows them to microtarget voters in certain congressional districts with outreach specific to their interests.

American Action Network: Modeled in part after the liberal Center for American Progress, this 501-c4 group is headed up by former Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman and managed day-to-day by Rob Collins, a former top aide to House Minority Whip Eric Cantor. Together with its sister group, the American Action Forum (see below), the outfit plans to be something of a GOP think tank, helping to craft the Republican message. But this side of the operation will focus more on advocating candidates than on policy development. A GOP source tells The Upshot the group is looking to spend as much as $25 million to influence the midterms. Already, the group has launched an ad against Charlie Crist, who quit the GOP to run as an independent in Florida's Senate race. The group has just launched a $450,000 campaign trashing Democrat Paul Hodes in New Hampshire's Senate race.

American Action Forum: An offshoot of the American Action Network, this group will focus more on formulating policy and helping GOP candidates deliver their message than on running ads attacking specific candidates. Fronted by Doug Holtz-Eakin, a former economic adviser to John McCain's presidential campaign, AAF lists Coleman and former governors Jeb Bush and Tom Ridge as board members.

Resurgent Republic: Founded by Gillespie and several GOP pollsters last fall, this group aims to be the Republican equivalent of Democracy Corps, a polling and research group founded by Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg and former Clinton operative James Carville. The nonprofit group will try to improve GOP messaging through polling and research groups and will work directly with other Republican groups in the network.

Republican State Leadership Committee: This 527 group plans to spend at least $40 million to influence state elections, including local House and Senate races, ahead of next year's planned redistricting debate. While Gillespie is the chairman, other advisers on board include former Rep. Tom Reynolds, who used to chair the House GOP campaign committee, and former RNC chair Mike Duncan (who is also working for American Crossroads).

AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki



The Jeb Bush Concrete Machine is busily widening the road to ruin.


Because laying waste to Florida just wasn't enough.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

7. Rubio Is Backed By The Bush Machine

His election will be their crowning achievement.