Monthly Archives: January 2011

Lawrence Lessig to visit Austin

Posted on 2011/01/31 by Ham Richards

Lawrence Lessig, Professor at Harvard Law School, is coming to Austin to speak on the corrosive influence of Money in Politics.  If you are not familiar with Prof. Lessig’s work, you may wish to view this 2.5 minute abstract of … Continue reading →

Posted in Events, Money in Politics | 2 Comments

The Lege’s Ledger

Posted on 2011/01/26 by s2snider

Folks from the Coffee Party’s Money-in-Politics group went to the State Capitol to visit the offices of the Austin-area state reps on Friday, Jan 21st. I went there in my capacity as the campaign finance issue chair of the League … Continue reading →

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NPR’s Morning Edition reviews Citizens United

Posted on 2011/01/21 by Ham Richards

On the one-year anniversary of Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission, Morning Edition has a story on the decision’s consequences. The story describes the FEC as deadlocked: [The three] Republicans wanted new rules that didn’t mandate disclosure of big, undisclosed … Continue reading →

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What does ‘Civility’ mean?

Posted on 2011/01/14 by Ham Richards

In his TheAtlantic.com blog, James Fallows quotes a reader’s query: Everyone seems to say, “we need to be more civil!” without actually putting forward positive advice on what constitutes responsible vs. irresponsible speech. … I would love to see a … Continue reading →

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Civility loses an advocate

Posted on 2011/01/13 by Ham Richards

The Civility Project, led by R. Mark DeMoss, a conservative evangelical Christian Republican and Lanny Davis, a liberal Jewish Democrat, was built on a Civility Pledge— I will be civil in my public discourse and behavior. I will be respectful of … Continue reading →

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Frank Rich no fan of No Labels

Posted on 2011/01/12 by Ham Richards

The title of Frank Rich’s Sunday New York Times column, “The Bipartisanship Racket,” gives the game away. According to Rich, In its patronizing desire to instruct us on what is wrong with our politics, No Labels ends up being a … Continue reading →

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Gerrymandering to be screened at Alamo Downtown

Posted on 2011/01/08 by Ham Richards

From Steve Bickerstaff, Adjunct Professor of Law, The University of Texas School of Law: The director of this film has asked me to be present at the showing and to discuss it. I appear in the film as an expert … Continue reading →

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Coffee Party Austin Meeting (March Chapter Meeting)

Posted on 2011/01/06 by Ham Richards

The FCC recently released its order to “Preserve the Free and Open Internet”, otherwise known as Net Neutrality regulations. What does this mean for consumers, the Internet service providers, and the Internet itself? What exactly is “Net Neutrality”, and what got … Continue reading →

Posted in Events, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Statesman: Independent political spending tiny in Texas

Posted on 2011/01/02 by Ham Richards

Today’s Austin American-Statesman features an article by Laylan Copelin, “Unclear state laws hamper corporate campaign spending in Texas.” Corporations and unions spent more money at the federal level — often anonymously through associations or groups — because the Federal Election … Continue reading →

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