Iwatch News

Colombia Vows to Crack Down on Narco-groups' Illegal Coltan Mining

Corbin Hiar | Posted 05.16.2012

Read More: Dodd-Frank, Center for Public Integrity, Colombia, Coltan, International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Juan Manuel Santos, Farc, Paramilitaries, Mauricio Cárdenas, Iwatch News, World News

After an International Consortium of Investigative Journalists exposé about paramilitaries involvement in the coltan trade, Colombia is moving to curb illegal mining of the highly sought after mineral.

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Money for Love? Romney Campaign Gives Over $1.7 Million to Republicans

Corbin Hiar | Posted 05.05.2012

Political committees controlled by Mitt Romney's campaign have made generous donations to prominent Republicans in early primary states, but records show contributions have tailed off as the GOP nominees head in to Super Tuesday.

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Lawrence Lessig on Campaign Finance Reform: Overturning Citizens United Isn't Enough

Corbin Hiar | Posted 04.30.2012

Read More: Supreme Court, Stephen Colbert, Super Pac, Campaign Finance Reform, MoveOn.Org, Corporations, Center for Public Integrity, Occupy Wall Street, Antonin Scalia, Harvard, 501c4, Anthony Kennedy, Lawrence Lessig, Citizens United, Tea Party, Iwatch News, Campaign Finance, Politics News

In contrast with many other campaign finance reformers, Harvard Professor Lawrence Lessig believes fixing the U.S. election system will require more than just overturning the Citizens United ruling, which removed many restrictions on independent political spending.

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SLIDESHOW: Romney-supporting Restore Our Future raises funds in lap of luxury

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 04.25.2012

Read More: Mitt Romney, Restore Our Future, Super PACs, The Center for Public Integrity, Iwatch News, Politics News

By Michael Beckel, iWatch NewsThey say it takes money to make money. And supporters of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's presidential bid have...

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"Liberal Media?" Conservative Super PACs Got Over $350,000 From Media Execs, Companies in 2011

Corbin Hiar | Posted 04.04.2012

Read More: Super Pac, Sam Zell, Center for Public Integrity, New Prosperity Foundation, Mitt Romney, Restore Our Future, Citizens United, Hubbard Broadcasting, Steven Spielberg, Center for Responsive Politics, American Crossroads, Jeffrey Katzenberg, Priorities USA Action, Iwatch News, Media News

Conservative complaints about a liberal bias in the media do not hold up, at least not when it comes to the free-spending groups known as "super PACs."

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Money for Nothing? TransCanada Blew $1.3 Million on Federal Lobbying for Keystone XL in 2011

Corbin Hiar | Posted 03.27.2012

Read More: Tar Sands, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Transcanada, Ferc, Lee Terry, John Boehner, Center for Public Integrity, Lobbying, North American Energy Access Act, Keystone XL Pipeline, President Obama, Climate Change, Brookings Institution, State Department, Iwatch News, Lobbyists, Keystone XL, Keystone Pipeline, Green News

TransCanada, the pipeline company pushing the recently rejected Keystone XL project, spent $410,000 on federal lobbying during the last three months of 2011 -- a new quarterly high for the company.

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Four Reasons GOP Lawmakers Aren't Backing Gingrich

Corbin Hiar | Posted 03.25.2012

Read More: Susan Molinari, Peter King, Tom Coburn, Jack Abramoff, Endorsements, Newt Gingrich 2012, Center for Public Integrity, Mitt Romney 2012, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Rick Santorum 2012, Newt Gingrich, Iwatch News, Republican Presidential Primary, Elections 2012, Republican Presidential Candidates, 2012 Election, Republicans, Politics News

Why are GOP lawmakers so reluctant to support their former colleague? Here are a few of the likely reasons.

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Do SOPA and PIPA Conflict With State Dept.'s Global Internet Freedom Goals?

Corbin Hiar | Posted 03.20.2012

Read More: Center for Public Integrity, Pipa, The New Republic, Protect IP, Hillary Clinton, Alec Ross, State Department, Barack Obama, Sopa, Iwatch News, World News

If done wrong, anti-piracy legislation could restrict the rights of Internet users across the country -- and put U.S. diplomats in a very awkward position.

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Why Did One Japanese Bluefin Tuna Sell For $736,000

Corbin Hiar | Posted 03.08.2012

Read More: Sushi, Japan, Japan Earthquake, Fukushima, Japan Tsunami, World Wildlife Fund, Center for Public Integrity, Bluefin Tuna, Iwatch News, Green News

While the bluefin tuna is widely acknowledged to be a threatened fish, the price paid Thursday for one 593-pound catch is more a show of nationalism and marketing saavy than a sign of how endangered the tuna has become.

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How Would a Romney Administration Regulate Air Pollution?

Corbin Hiar | Posted 02.22.2012

Read More: Cap and Trade, Council on Environmental Quality, Acid Rain, Center for Public Integrity, Acid Rain Program, Poisoned Places, George W. Bush, Epa, James Connaughton, Mitt Romney, Hot Spots, Air Pollution, Pollution, Air Toxics, Iwatch News, Green News

With Mitt Romney at or near the top of the polls in the race for the Republican presidential nomination, the Center for Public Integrity's iWatch News wanted to find out how his administration might regulate toxic air pollutants.

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Why the EPA's Forthcoming Power Plant Rule Is a Big Deal

Corbin Hiar | Posted 02.15.2012

It's an important moment for Americans who eat fish or use electricity. After more than two decades of delays, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is poised to issue a new regulation restricting some power plant emissions that have polluted the nation's air and water.

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Jon Corzine gave $5 million to help candidates win office; now he's being grilled by Congress

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 02.07.2012

Read More: Jon Corzine, Mf Global Bankruptcy, Iwatch News, MF Global, Campaign Finance, Business News

By Aaron Mehta and Sandy Johnson, iWatch NewsJon Corzine, a one-time wizard of the financial world, testified Thursday he doesn't know where a billi...

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GOP senators' position on consumer finance bureau matches industry lobby

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 02.07.2012

Read More: Richard Cordray, Congress, Lobbyists, Financial Reform, Consumer Financial Protection Agency, Cfpb, Financial Crisis, Gop, Barack Obama, Iwatch News, Politics News

By Ben Hallman and John Dunbar, iWatch NewsFive months after its formation, the new federal agency tasked with safeguarding the financial interests ...

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Odd couples: Gingrich casts wide net to evangelicals, Tea Party and K Street lobbyists

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 02.06.2012

Read More: Elections 2012, Newt Gingrich, Tea Party, Lobbyists, Barack Obama, Iwatch News, Politics News

By Peter H. Stone, iWatch NewsAs Newt Gingrich resurrects his once moribund campaign, his fundraisers and outside allies are moving aggressively to ...

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15 Tea Party Caucus freshmen rake in $3.5 million in first 9 months in Washington

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.18.2012

Read More: Congress, Fundraising, Tea Party, Iwatch News, Republicans, Politics News

By Aaron Mehta and Bob Biersack, iWatch NewsOn her website, Rep. Diane Black asks constituents to join advisory panels in her Tennessee district. "I...

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Energy Dept. offered to put private investors ahead of taxpayers if Solyndra went bankrupt

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.16.2012

Read More: Department of Energy, George Kaiser, Solyndra, Barack Obama, Iwatch News, Politics News

By Ronnie Greene, iWatch NewsAs solar panel maker Solyndra sunk deeper into debt last year, a top Department of Energy official pulled the company's...

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Carrying concealed weapons just keeps getting easier

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.15.2012

Read More: Gun Control, Concealed Weapons Permits, Guns, Iwatch News, Concealed Carry, Politics News

By Rick Schmitt, iWatch NewsIn Ohio, it is now OK to possess a hidden, loaded handgun in cars and bars, public parks and parking lots. Gun owners ha...

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Nixon to grand jury: $100,000 cash contributions and rewarding donors with ambassadorships

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.10.2012

Read More: Watergate, Richard Nixon, Election, Iwatch News, Campaign Finance, Grand Jury, Politics News

By John Aloysius Farrell, iWatch NewsRichard Nixon's grand jury testimony, with tales of the sale of government appointments; harassment of politica...

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Where regulators failed, citizens took action -- testing their own air

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.10.2012

Read More: Toxic Chemicals, Politics News, Npr, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Epa, Tonawanda, Pollution, New York, Clean Air Act, Iwatch News, Green News

By Elizabeth Shogren, Kristen Lombardi and Sandra Bartlett, iWatch NewsTONAWANDA, N,Y. -- For the past three decades, Jeani Thomson has been pleadin...

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Joe Allbaugh, who helped put George W. Bush in White House, now running Perry campaign

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.09.2012

Read More: Elections 2012, Politics, Joe Allbaugh, Barack Obama, Rick Perry, Iwatch News, George W. Bush, Politics News

By Peter H. Stone, iWatch NewsJoe Allbaugh, the no-nonsense campaign manager for George W. Bush in 2000 who now runs an international security consu...

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Many Americans left behind in the quest for cleaner air

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.07.2012

Read More: Toxic Chemicals, Npr, Politics News, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Pollution, Clean Air Act, Epa, Iwatch News, Green News

By Jim Morris, Chris Hamby and Elizabeth Lucas, iWatch NewsFor all of her 62 years, Lois Dorsey has lived five blocks from a mass of petrochemical p...

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Bailed-out banks paid no income tax in some years, according to study

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.04.2012

Read More: Taxes, Tarp, Politics, PNC Financial Services Group, State Street Corp., Banks, Wells Fargo & Co., Business, Goldman Sachs Group, Iwatch News, Capital One., Business News

By John Dunbar, iWatch NewsFive banks that received federal bailout funds during the financial crisis paid no income tax at least one year between 2...

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As they lobby for a tax holiday, some big multinational players say they've got plenty of cash on hand

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.04.2012

Read More: Taxes, Politics, Microsoft, Apple, Corporations, Oracle, Securities and Exchange Commission, Business, Carl Levin, Iwatch News, Google, Business News

By John Aloysius Farrell and Aaron Mehta, iWatch NewsAs select U.S. multinational corporations push for a tax holiday on a trillion dollars parked o...

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'Nonpartisan' youth movement has deep GOP roots

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 01.01.2012

Read More: Elections 2012, Marketing, Social Media, Heritage Foundation, Gop, Youth Vote, Barack Obama, Iwatch News, College News

By John Dunbar, iWatch News"Generation Opportunity " bills itself as a fast-growing, nonpartisan organization that uses its website and popular Face...

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How candidates' tax plans would affect one struggling family

The Center for Public Integrity | Posted 12.26.2011

Read More: Working Poor, Taxes, Politics, George W. Bush, Herman Cain, Mitt Romney, Barack Obama, Rick Perry, Iwatch News, Politics News

By Amy Biegelsen and John Aloysius Farrell, iWatch NewsUntil 2008, Darrell Seela owned a home in Las Vegas where he and his wife worked and raised t...

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