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12/29/2008
Republicans outspent, $4.4M to $2.7M
Earlier this month, the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign released their report on “outside group spending in the 2008 legislative elections.” WDC analyzes spending by “labor and conservative ideological groups” that for the November, 2008 legislative races they report, totaled a record $7.1 million on “mostly negative advertising, mailings and telephone calls to harass voters and smear candidates….”
[This is a repeat of my commentary posted last Friday, but with promised updated party totals. See below.]
TWDC's report on “Independent Expenditures and Issue Ads” is just one way in which the campaign finance reform advocacy group tries to get their arms around campaign spending in Wisconsin political campaigns. Their breakdowns, for the November, 2008 Assembly and Senate races include:
- Contributions to individual campaigns (that include PAC contributions directly to campaigns, which WDC also breaks out by PAC) and
- Dollars spent independently of candidate campaigns, or, as they label it, Independent Expenditures and Issue Ads (I call it IE/IA).
It’s that second category that last week’s report addresses. Independent Expenditures and Issue Ads are distinguished from one another by WDC:
Independent Expenditure: “Spending in support of or opposition to a candidate without consultation, coordination or cooperation with the supported candidate” – essentially spending by PACs.
Issue Ads: “An issue ad, in its true form, is defined by its focus on an issue and does not advocate the election or defeat of a candidate.” Because these ads in the vast majority of cases are meant to favor a specific candidate (as opposed to an “issue”), WDC usually calls those who pay for such ads “phony issue ad groups.”
Check out the table in the report that details the spending by PAC or “phony issue ad” group. Leading the way was the behemoth WEAC, spending $2.1M of your tax dollars (well, your tax dollars paid as salaries and premiums for WEAC members and portions of those dollars ultimately ending up as political action monies) for political action against Republican candidates.
On its website, WDC describes the political bent of each of the IE/IAs, here and here. If you look at those definitions, then total the spending directed to Republican and Democratic candidates, you see Democrat-supporting groups outspent Republican-supporting groups by nearly 2 to 1. Below are the groups listed on the WDC 2008 spending table; I’ve separated them by general political interest. Some of the organizations supported candidates of both parties; where that is the case, the group is *asterisked and I’ve gone into the WDC detail to break out those totals by party.
Supporting Democratic candidates, $4,382,829
WEAC $2,099,984
Greater Wisconsin Committee $1,330,000
Building a Stronger Wisconsin $400,000
Advancing Wisconsin $242,993
Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters* $94,186
Keep Our North Strong $65,255
Wisconsin Professional Police Association* $44,712
American Federation of Teachers – WI $40,000
Planned Parenthood $29,864
Volunteers for Agriculture* $11,719
Wisconsin Hospitals PAC* $8,660
Winnebagoland Uniserv PAC $5,800
UAW Janesville-Madison PAC $4,544
Madison Teachers Inc. PAC $2,655
Fair Wisconsin PAC $1,876
Milwaukee Police Association PAC* $571
Wisconsin Right to Life* $10
Supporting Republican candidates, $2,703,113
Coalition for America’s Families $1,350,000
All Children Matter $900,000
WMC $160,000
Wisconsin Inst. for Leadership $100,000
Working Families PAC $64,753
Wisconsin Family Action $45,000
Club for Growth $43,500
WI Professional Police Association* $13,163
Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters* $12,068
WI Right to Life PAC* $8,146
Wisconsin Hospitals PAC* $4,948
Volunteers for Agriculture PAC* $1,251
Milwaukee Police Assoc* $284
Jo Egelhoff, FoxPolitics.net
COMMENTS
Jo,
What's your point?
Republicans depend on low voter turnout (of non-Republicans) to win elections.
What your numbers totals show is mirrored in the national vote. There are some who watch elections like Mark Crispin Miller who would say that the Obama totals would be even higher
without vote suppression. Vote suppression invariably helps Republicans.
So here you are seeing not only bigger number totals by the Democrats in financing, you are seeing a larger number of organizations working together... sort of like what the Republican machine has done over the years.
Is there some "Where's Waldo" here that is the reason for this analysis?
Personal observation: Milwaukee Police Department (R) $284. That's no more than somebody's couple hours of overtime for a John McCain visit.
Small nitpick for Mike McCabe: you say his organization is the Wisconsin Democracy Council where the exact title is Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.
Lon Ponschock (Mon Dec 29 12:13:39 2008)
My point surely isn't to talk about voter suppression. Geez Lon, write your own darned article on that topic if you want to. The point is to say that Democrats have more money and more (better?) organization than Republicans these days. And that wins elections.
Thanks for the correction on WIsconsin Democracy Campaign's name. Dumb mind-blank and I've corrected it in today's and Friday's comments.
Jo (Mon Dec 29 12:37:37 2008)
>>> "more money and more (better?) organization" ????
Jo, how about putting the blame where it belongs, on the Bush and conservative agenda?
Jack Lohman (Mon Dec 29 15:09:13 2008)
Jo, let me tackle this one with Jack.
First, you are confusing a broad brushstroke of "Bush and the Conservative" agenda with a blog regarding specific campaign spending and comparison's in organizational abilities. What Jo is stating is geared toward two areas; Conservatives looking for reasons for success in the 2008 Campaign by Democrats, and secondly as a way to show Democrat effectiveness in targeted spending in this market. To come along and just give the standard "Bush and Conservative agenda" remark is simply without merit and shows a lack of critical thinking in debating the issue, or showing viable issues or contrasts with a Conservative/Republican agenda.
Sean (Mon Dec 29 15:23:43 2008)
I won't go on about voter suppression. That article should actually be yours with the likes of Van Holland lurking around. The last thing I will say is that the WDC is only one index. Does anyone seriously think that the Democrats were outspent in conventions, news outlets, publicity materials or any other index of dollars to votes? [Yes. Jo talking here.] More to the point, does the figure for WMC represent that as an organization in toto rather than inclusive of individual corporate donations? [Yes, in toto, as you say. Jo here again. Individual corporations can not donate to campaigns. Where employees of corporations donate to campaigns, those figures will be included in summary profiles put together by WDC, about mid-March, after final reports are due.]
Lon Ponschock (Mon Dec 29 15:54:10 2008)
Sean, I’m sorry, but even after voting for Bush twice and McCain this time, I can’t just put blinders on and write it off as “the Dems won because they spent more money than the R’s.”
If the R’s are ever going to get it back they must get real about what their problem really is. The list Jo posted is just emblematic of a disenchanted electorate and the cash value had absolutely zero to do with why the R’s lost.
If the party is going to continue along the Limbaugh right-wing wacko line, look for more of the same. We’re in for a long run for the Dems.
And for the record, I’m center-right, not far-right. I’m also left on some issues, like health care, and I’m not unhappy with Obama so far.
My big complaint about the conservatives is that they hate taxes but refuse to fix what is causing them: political corruption. Either fix the system or quit complaining.
Jack Lohman (Mon Dec 29 17:36:45 2008)
Sean, I appreciate you taking Jack on for me! I think you're both correct (I'm not sure I can ever call Jack 'right'...) In the 57th District, McCain polled only 39% of voters. Wow. Very hard for any Republican candidate to overcome that at the top of the ticket. Not impossible, but difficult for a non-incumbent. Money was very much a factor in many of the races throughout the state and the country - and Republicans having lost their way is a major factor in the left raising phenomenal dollars. Yes Lon, much more than the Dems.
Jo (Mon Dec 29 18:03:05 2008)
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