Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

FEC can't help Kentucky GOP because of ... Kentucky’s McConnell

Radio host Matt Jones and Blackjewel Coal miner Chris Rowe

Kentucky Republicans want the FEC to investigate radio host Matt Jones (seated, interviewing unemployed coal miner Chris Rowe), but the commission has too few members to operate.

Scott Olson/Getty Images

The Kentucky Republican Party is alleging campaign finance wrongdoing by a radio host considering a longshot bid for Mitch McConnell's Senate seat. But the complaint won't ever get answered without the help of the Senate majority leader himself.

That's because the case has been filed with the Federal Election Commission, which is now into its third month without the minimum membership necessary to begin even the most routine enforcement proceedings. And the reason for that is Kentucky's own McConnell. In his view the FEC that regulates best is the one that regulates least, and so he's bottled up the nomination that would give the agency a four-person quorum.


The agency has been at a policymaking standstill since the beginning of September, when Republican commissioner Matthew Petersen resigned leaving just three of his colleagues behind.

At the start of November, the FEC had a backlog of more than 300 enforcement matters, 90 of them awaiting decisions by the commissioners.

President Trump two years ago nominated Texas attorney Trey Trainor, a Republican, but the Senate has not so much as held a hearing on him. And, since all three remaining commissioners are serving past the expiration of their terms, which the law allows, some in the GOP say the time is ripe for Trump to put forward an entire slate of six. By law no more than three could be from his party.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

Democrats say that, as an interim step, they would be content to seat one new commissioner from each side so that enforcement could get started along with the real ramp-up in 2020 presidential and congressional campaign fundraising activities.

The complaint filed Wednesday alleges that popular liberal sports radio host Matt Jones is improperly receiving corporate contributions in the form of free air time from iHeartRadio, the distributor of his sports talk show, and Simon & Schuster, the publisher of his upcoming book about McConnell.

While the FEC is powerless to act, one of the nation's biggest radio networks is not, and on Thursday iHeartRadio took Jones off the air until he decides whether to run.

Jones has not yet officially filed papers declaring his run next year. But he did launch an exploratory committee in September and his most recent FEC filing (the agency is still allowed to accept those) says the committee's only income has been a $9,702 loan from the prospective candidate.

If Jones gets in the race he would face tough competition for the Democratic nomination from Amy McGrath, a retired Marine fighter pilot and unsuccessful 2018 House candidate who has already raised $10 million.

Jones' book deal has been a thorn in the Republican Party's side as well. To promote the book (tentatively titled "Mitch, Please!") he plans to travel to all 120 counties in Kentucky to detail how, in his mind, McConnell has had a negative impact on the state throughout his 30-year Senate tenure. The complaint says this book tour is "inextricably linked" to Jones' political campaign.

Read More

Dictionary definition of tariff
Would replacing the income tax with higher tariffs help ‘struggling Americans’?
Devonyu/Getty Images

Could Trump’s tariffs have unintended consequences that hurt America?

The first few weeks of the Trump administration have been head-spinning. President Trump and his team were well-prepared to launch their policy agenda, signing over 50 executive orders, the most in a president's first month in more than 40 years. A major focus has been economic policy, first with immigration raids, which were quickly followed by announcements of tariffs on imports from America’s biggest trade partners.

The tariff announcements have followed a meandering and confusing course. President Trump announced the first tariffs on February 1, but within 24 hours, he suspended the tariffs on Mexico and Canada in favor of “negotiations.” Mexico and Canada agreed to enforce their borders better to stop migrants and fentanyl imports, which the Trump administration called a victory. Despite the triumphalist rhetoric, the enforcement measures were substantially the same as what both countries were already planning to do.

Keep ReadingShow less
When Power Protects Predators: How U.S. Rape Culture Silences Survivors

Individuals protesting.

Gabrielle Chalk

When Power Protects Predators: How U.S. Rape Culture Silences Survivors

On November 5, 2024—the night of the most anticipated election cycle for residents of the United States—thousands gathered around the country, sitting with friends in front of large-screen TVs, optimistic and ready to witness the election of the next president of the United States.

As the hours of election night stretched on and digital state maps turned red or blue with each counted ballot, every 68 seconds a woman was sexually assaulted in the U.S., an estimate calculated by the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN).

Keep ReadingShow less
Where is Ted Cruz When American Democracy Needs Him?

Senator Ted Cruz.

Sergio Flores/Getty Images

Where is Ted Cruz When American Democracy Needs Him?

The president is ignoring the law when he isn’t intentionally violating it. He is dissolving federal agencies created by Congress and impounding funds even though that is clearly prohibited. He is governing by issuing executive orders and even claims the power to roll back birthright citizenship, ignoring the Constitution itself.

All of this and an unelected oligarch given free rein by the president to ransack government departments and threaten civil servants. If Americans weren’t living it, it would be hard to believe that this could be happening in a nation founded on principles of limited government, separation of powers, and checks and balances.

Keep ReadingShow less
The Republican Party Can Build A Winning Coalition With Independents

People voting at a polling booth.

Getty Images//Rawpixel

The Republican Party Can Build A Winning Coalition With Independents

The results of the 2024 election should put to bed any doubts as to the power of independent voters to decide key elections. Independents accounted for 34% of voters in 2024, handing President Trump the margin of victory in every swing state race and making him only the second Republican to win the popular vote since 1988. The question now is whether Republicans will build bridges with independent voters and cement a generational winning coalition or squander the opportunity like the Democrats did with the independent-centric Obama coalition.

Almost as many independents came out to vote this past November as Republicans, more than the 31% of voters who said they were Democrats, and just slightly below the 35% of voters who said they were Republicans. In 2020, independents cast just 26% of the ballots nationwide. The President’s share of the independent vote went up 5% compared to the 2020 election when he lost the independent vote to former President Biden by a wide margin. It’s no coincidence that many of the key demographics that President Trump made gains with this election season—Latinos, Asians and African Americans—are also seeing historic levels of independent voter registration.

Keep ReadingShow less