Citizen Cartwright

House Democrats may get tougher on earmarks

In the face of charges that they've been backsliding on ethics issues, House Democratic leaders are backing a one-year ban on earmarking money for private, for-profit contractors, The Washington Post says.

In 2007, nearly all earmarks were eliminated from appropriations bills — but lawmakers and lobbyists then turned their attention to federal agencies, Roll Call says.

So Bill Allison of the Sunlight Foundation, which seeks government transparency, says that instead of banning earmarks, Congress should create a centralized place for the public to see who is requesting earmarks and an easily navigable way to track them.

Democrats' toughness at issue

Public concern is increasing about President Obama's handling of national security, according to a new poll by the Democratic group Democracy Corps and the progressive nonprofit Third Way.

Sixty percent of Americans believe the United States is on the wrong track, according to the poll. And people rate Democrats at about the same level as Republicans — an erosion of an advantage Democrats have had.

"We would not want the election to be held today, with this poll," says Democracy Corps' chief pollster Stan Greenberg. "If the election were held today, this would be a 'change' election."

U.S. Chamber of Commerce becoming a political force

It's putting together a big grass-roots political operation — part of a trend where the traditional political parties are losing ground to well-funded and increasingly assertive outside groups, the Los Angeles Times says.

Friends of the U.S. Chamber has generated more than a million letters and e-mails to members of Congress, 700,000 of them opposing Democrats' health care plan — up from 40,000 congressional contacts in 2008.

The Supreme Court's recent decision on corporate campaign spending has made many executives more comfortable about using corporate funds for political purposes, the Times says.

How much policy does money buy?

Lawmakers say their votes aren't bought.

But people who write campaign donation checks do so expecting a return on their investments — and their experience makes that outcome a good bet, The Washington Post says.

And the fact that the practice appears to be legal is beside the point, because both donors and voters view it as corrupt, according to some independent campaign finance experts.

"This constant claim by members that there is no link is specious, because we can see the link," says Melanie Sloan, executive director of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics.

Democrats' own 'culture of corruption?'

Amid the growing list of Democratic ethics scandals, news stories from the so-called liberal media and even from generally acknowledged unbiased sources like The Associated Press are beginning to sound like GOP opinion pieces.

"The party that pledged to 'drain the swamp' if given control of Congress finds itself sinking in the muck nine months from Election Day," AP says.

The ethics cases are opening the party to the same criticism House Democrats used to wrest the chamber from Republican control, The New York Times says.

And, in fact, House Republican Leader John Boehner, Ohio, said on Thursday: “Speaker Pelosi famously promised the most open, honest and ethical Congress in history. Yet here we go again."

Pelosi, D-Calif., told reporters on Thursday, "I think we've come a long way since I became speaker with the outside ethics groups and now we have a functioning ethics committee, bipartisan and independent of the speaker."

Iraqi election violence

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki says bombings and political assassinations in the runup to this weekend's parliamentary elections don't foreshadow a return of terrorism and sectarian violence.

"I am not afraid of terrorism spreading or returning again, because we have an army, police and adequate security forces, and there is national unity that took hold following national reconciliation between Sunnis and Shiites," he says.

Democratic leaders as 'evil empire'

The Republican National Committee plans to raise campaign funds capitalizing on “fear” of President Obama and a pledge to "save the country from trending toward socialism," Politico says.

It obtained a confidential RNC fundraising presentation depicting an "evil empire,” with Obama as the Joker from Batman, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as Cruella DeVille and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., as Scooby Doo.

Perry beats Hutchison in Texas

Amid what the Dallas Morning News calls the "whipsaw politics of the Tea Party movement," Gov. Rick Perry defeated Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in the Republican primary.

Perry had one dominant theme, the paper says: "I'm Texas, she's Washington."

Understanding Iraq's election

It's obvious that the March 7 parliamentary elections in Iraq are crucial not only for Iraqis but for Americans who want their soldiers to come home.

Here are some frequently asked questions on the elections and a primer on the competing groups.

Health care overhaul

Nine House Democrats are open to switching their votes to support President Obama's health care plan, according to an Associated Press survey.

The president is expected to outline his final "way forward" in a speech on Wednesday, including in it some Republican ideas for increasing health care efficiencies.

And that, AP says, could give wavering Democrats political cover by showing that the party has been willing to compromise and isn't just ramming the bill through Congress.