New Jersey congressman finds creative ways to use campaign funds... GOP out raises Dems... Romney's first ad... Your Pixies Pandora channel is now going to come with sad micro-targeted political ads... And videos from Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry.
CONGRESSMAN USES CAMPAIGN FUNDS FOR DONOR WEDDING -- New Jersey congressman Rob Andrews (D-N.J.) has figured out the greatest trick for spending campaign money: double-book any event as a campaign event and you don't personally have to pay for it. Have to attend a wedding in Scotland? No problem. The wedding was for a donor and a volunteer advisor. Book it to the campaign. Daughter's high school graduation? Easy. Just double bill the party as celebrating both the high school graduation and your 20 years of service in Congress and you can bill it to your campaign. The Star-Ledger reports, "'We have legal advice, and before we make any expenditure like that we listen to legal advice,' said Andrews, pointing out that the rest of the European vacation, including airfare, was paid for with family funds. 'We're convinced this is an appropriate expenditure to thank and support someone who has given us a lot of time and effort.' But the Edinburgh trip is just one of many instances in which the South Jersey congressman - who together with his wife earned more than $500,000 in 2010 - mixed personal and political expenses in an unorthodox way.'" [Star-Ledger]
Republicans out raise Democrats in October: The Republican National Committee raised $8.4 million to the Democratic National Committee's $7.9 million. The National Republican Congressional Committee raised $4.6 million to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's $4.2 million.
ROMNEY RUNS FIRST AD -- Mitt Romney announced today that he'll run his first advertisement of the cycle in the New Hampshire market starting Tuesday morning. The ad, which is part of a $134,000 ad buy on WMUR, will focus on promises Barack Obama made in New Hampshire as a candidate and how he has failed to fulfill them, according to Romney. The ad coincides with the president's visit to the Granite State. Here's what Romney said about the ad, "The contrast between what he said and what he did is so stark, people will recognize we really do need to have someone new lead this country." Romney aired his first ad during his first run for the Republican nomination for president in March of 2007. He will join the campaign of Ron Paul and the super PAC supporting Jon Huntsman on the air in New Hampshire. [HuffPost]
CAMPAIGN VIDEOS
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Committee: Newt Gingrich for President
Candidate supported: Newt Gingrich
Spot: "Newt Gingrich Was Right About The 'Super Committee'" -- Newt Gingrich has been trashing the Super Committee as a farce, an insult, and a terrible idea in GOP debates for months now. This web video brings together Gingrich's favorite moments of his Super Committee bashing in time for the failure of the deficit-cutting committee to reach an agreement as required.
Link: [http://youtu.be/2hU0F7bt0wQ]
Market: YouTube
Buy: None. Just a web video.
Committee: Rick Perry for President
Candidate supported: Rick Perry
Spot: "Outsider" -- Rick Perry cuts this ad to coincide with the roll-out of his agenda to reform Washington, which includes turning Congress into a part-time body. The ad seeks to position Perry as a Washington outsider and says, in a swipe at his GOP primary opponents, "Replacing one Washington insider with another won't change a thing."
Link: [http://youtu.be/5Ebeiqt8XOE]
Market: National. Fox News.
Buy: Part of a $975,000 ad buy.
COMING SOON TO PANDORA: POLITICAL ADS -- In what appears to be a move made to make Jon Huntsman yet again pander embarrassingly to Generation X, Pandora will soon include political advertisements in their service. These ads will be highly targeted ones from the campaigns like a Mitt Romney ad for your Baha Men channel. The Atlantic's Philip Bump explains why Pandora is in such a good spot for these micro-targeting ads, "The service already differentiates advertising by location; if you're a listener, you've no doubt heard location-specific ads pop up. You may be less aware of the way it subtly differentiates along another line: what you listen to. ... What Pandora offers a campaign is zip code-level targeting (more refined than broadcast or even most cable) and breakdowns by demographic, for a price that will undoubtedly beat TV's. Its audience size is nowhere near a TV broadcast, of course. ... Opening the service up to political ads moves forward the sophistication of political targeting and makes them money -- potentially, lots of money." [The Atlantic]
The web comic XKCD does a massive infographic on money and its many uses in America. It includes a major section on campaign money, which is really worth checking out.
RECENT POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE REGISTRATIONS
Washington Anglers for Conservation, Federal Way, WA, Treasurer: Margie Viall.
RECENT INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES
NONE
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