We've had a virtually lawless campaign finance system in Missouri for more than four years. Here's what it looks like.

While we are obviously not afraid to have a sense of humor (see video), we are dead serious about fixing this problem. Just ask the guy in the American flag underwear.

In the 2012 election cycle, dark money spent a total of $322 million, 84 percent of which came from conservative organizations in efforts to elect Republicans.

Koch's billions are a formidable political weapon, even without owning any influential newspapers. Thanks to Citizens United, it's a more powerful weapon than ever, and we know it's having an impact even when they don't choose to deploy them.

Supporters of Republican Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., have launched “Rand PAC 2016.” But because the super PAC uses the potential presidential candidate...

“We got way too excited over money in the 2012 elections,” Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein argued at a conference on money in politic...

By Dave Levinthal May 4, 2013 This story was originally published by The Center for Public Integrity, which is a nonprofit, n...

By Dave Levinthal May 2, 2013 This story was originally published by The Center for Public Integrity, which is a nonprofit, n...

Even the most cynical amongst us were stunned when the U.S. Senate voted down a watered down, bipartisan, partial background check for gun purchases that's supported by some 90 percent of Americans and 74 percent of NRA members. This happened because money has near-complete control of our political system. The NRA outspent the Brady Center to Control Gun Violence by 73 to 1 last year. As Gabby Giffords said in her brilliant New York Times op-ed, senators betrayed the people because of a deep fear of the NRA unseating them from office. The NRA has that power because they have and spend real political money.

While state legislators can appropriately "urge" their colleagues in Congress to take action, voters are in a much stronger position; lawmakers must answer to them or face electoral defeat.

If the IRS or DOJ were serious about ensuring that so-called social welfare organizations are not abusing their tax-exempt status by engaging in political activities, they could start by taking a close look at IRS forms 990 and 1023.

WASHINGTON -- The recent Wall Street deregulation push in Congress has been fueled by a significant disparity in campaign donations from big banks: Me...

By Dave Levinthal March 29, 2013 This story was originally published by The Center for Public Integrity, which is a nonprofit, nonpartisan investiga...

You often hear progressives bemoaning the massive war chests of the right-wing funders. But a common mistake made by the left is not adequately focusing on cultivating their own likeminded super-rich.

What people do in their bedrooms shouldn't be the public's business. Women should have rights over their own bodies. Same-sex couples should be allowed to marry. But what powerful people do in their boardrooms is the public's business.

WASHINGTON -- California officials have widened an investigation into the source of $11 million that was mysteriously funneled by a few nonprofit grou...

One of the key jobs of democratic governance is choosing the nature of the marketplace we want to support. What rules about mergers or sitting on multiple boards would have made a difference in the development of Koch Industries?

The Hawaii drive for public financing of campaigns is another illustration of how Americans are pushing back against the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission that corporations have the same rights as people.

McCutcheon presents an opportunity for the Supreme Court to reaffirm the importance of contribution limits in preventing political corruption and to recognize their role in promoting electoral competition. The Court should adhere to firmly established precedent and uphold the aggregate contribution limit.

To say a president and other politicians shouldn't try to raise money to help fight for his agenda is simply wrong, especially with the huge buckets of money being raised and spent to fight him.

Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.) has been in Congress for only seven weeks, but he already supports measures to decrease the influence of money in the pol...