How Some Nonprofit Groups Funnel Dark Money Into Campaigns

Aug. 18, 2012, 11:25 p.m.

Explore how tax-exempt groups active in the 2010 election spent millions of dollars on campaigns, sometimes reporting less political spending to the Internal Revenue Service than they did to election officials.

Two Dark Money Groups Outspending All Super PACs Combined

Aug. 13, 2012, 12:50 p.m.

Karl Rove’s Crossroads GPS and Americans for Prosperity, a group backed by the Koch brothers, have put almost $60 million so far into ads to influence the presidential race, an analysis of new spending estimates shows.

Donations to Scott Walker Flagged as Potential Fraud

May 18, 2012, 11:18 a.m.

A woman in upstate New York is surprised to find a contribution to the Wisconsin governor’s campaign on her credit card.

Read the Tax Returns From Karl Rove’s ‘Dark Money’ Group (Donors Still a Mystery)

April 18, 2012, 5 p.m.

The returns for nonprofit Crossroads GPS are the first glimpse of how much the group, which has spent millions on political ads, raised in 2010 and 2011.

The Return of CREEP

April 12, 2012, 10:14 a.m.

New FEC filings show 324 super PACs, including 159 with money and one named for the infamous fundraising committee embroiled in the Watergate scandal

Ron Paul Is Really Serious About Transparency

April 2, 2012, 10:41 a.m.

Unlike other candidates, Paul’s campaign reports the smallest expenses, even the 12 cents at Enterprise Rent-A-Car.

Two Year Sentence for Man Accused in Pakistan Spy Plot

March 30, 2012, 5:09 p.m.

Kashmiri-American Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai allegedly used at least $3.5 million from the ISI to try to influence U.S. policy on Kashmir.

Campaign Spending Shows Political Ties, Self-Dealing

March 28, 2012, 12:02 p.m.

So far, top super PACs and presidential candidates have spent more than $306 million in ways that hint at potential coordination. In some cases, this could violate FEC rules. 

A Tangled Web: Who’s Making Money From All This Campaign Spending?

March 23, 2012, 10:06 a.m.

Many have been detailing the vast sums being raised by the presidential candidates and the super PACs supporting them. But where are all those millions being spent?

A Tangled Web: Who’s Making Money From All This Campaign Spending?

March 21, 2012, 1:41 p.m.

CPAC Tips: How to Win Friends and Influence

Feb. 13, 2012, 5:34 p.m.

Panels and parties at last week’s Conservative Political Action Conference provided a window into how the pros are raising unlimited, undisclosed money this election cycle. 

With Spotlight on Super PAC Dollars, Nonprofits Escape Scrutiny

Feb. 3, 2012, 6:01 p.m.

Super PAC filings for 2011 reveal few surprises in identifying contributors: Unions give to Democrats, while businesses back Republicans. Much less is known about the social-welfare nonprofits that might play a big role in the election.

PAC Track: Now Includes Contributions

Feb. 1, 2012, 11:22 a.m.

What and where are the super PACs spending?

In the Gusher of Super PACs, Even One Named ‘The Internet’

Jan. 20, 2012, 1:53 p.m.

Super PACs with similar-sounding names, satirical motives or undeclared aims are setting the stage for voter confusion in the months ahead. A super PAC called “a SuperPAC”? No kidding.

Kashmiri-American Pleads Guilty in Pakistan Spy Plot

Dec. 7, 2011, 7:53 p.m.

Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai, the head of the Kashmiri American Council, admitted making false statements to U.S. officials about $3.5 million in payments he received from Pakistan and its Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, or ISI. The money was allegedly used to try to influence U.S. policy on the disputed
territory of Kashmir.

‘Spillionaires’ Powerbroker Loses Re-election Bid

Nov. 21, 2011, 3 p.m.

Craig Taffaro Jr., president of Louisiana’s St. Bernard parish, who had been accused of favoritism in awarding work after the BP oil spill, loses to a candidate promising reform.

Super PAC Man Gobbles Up Regulators’ Time, Patience

Nov. 18, 2011, 11:50 a.m.

A Florida man has flooded the FEC with filings for a new kind of political action committee, showing how easy it is to create them and how few rules there are. 

Man Accused in Pakistani Spy Plot Dies

Oct. 7, 2011, 2:32 p.m.

It’s unclear how death will affect the U.S. Justice Department case against Zaheer Ahmad and another man, accused of using Pakistani money to try to influence U.S. policy on Kashmir.

The Man Behind Pakistan Spy Agency’s Plot to Influence Washington

Oct. 3, 2011, 10:04 a.m.

In some ways, Syed Ghulam Nabi Fai was living the American dream, with friends in high places and a nice home in suburban Washington. Now the advocate for Kashmir is under house arrest, facing a charge that he was a foreign agent.