Free Republic

While some sectors of the American economy have changed allegiances this presidential cycle in terms of their donations to the major political parties, one industry that hasn't changed its allegiances is media. That probably doesn't come as a surprise to readers of this site but the numbers are still interesting nonetheless: All the major media companies, driven largely by their Hollywood film and television businesses, have made larger contributions to President Obama than to his rival, former Gov. Mitt Romney, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonprofit, nonpartisan Washington-based research group that publishes the Open Secrets Web site....

A big-time donor to President Barack Obama is also a financial supporter of Paul Ryan. Marc Benioff, a national campaign co-chair for President Obama's reelection campaign, donated $10,000 to Ryan's political action committee earlier this summer, in June, according to CNN. Benioff has helped raise more than $500,000 for Obama's re-election effort, and even hosted a $35,800-a-plate fundraiser featuring Stevie Wonder and hip-hop artist Will.i.am. The founder and CEO of Salesforce.com is also an Obama national campaign co-chair, a distinction awarded to select Democratic heavyweights like Rahm Emanuel, Dick Durbin and Russ Feingold. "I'm squarely a supporter of the president,...

Democratic Party officials say they will not release the names of donors to next month’s political convention before the event, despite an earlier pledge that they would regularly disclose the contributors. In its marketing materials, the party promises that the “people’s convention,” set to begin Sept. 3 in Charlotte, N.C., will be the “most open and accessible ever.” But the names of donors, some of whom are giving up to $100,000, will remain secret until federal disclosure documents are filed Oct. 15, six weeks after the parties have ended and public attention has shifted to Election Day.

A Source Tells The New Yorker That George Soros 'Feels Hurt' By Obama Julia La Roche Aug. 20, 2012, 3:16 PM Billionaire hedge fund manager George Soros, who is known for speaking publicly about the economy and making big donations to liberal causes, has been disappointed by Obama "both politically and personally", an unnamed Soros confidant told The New Yorker's Jane Mayer. Here's why... From the New Yorker: (emphasis ours) ...When Soros wanted to meet with Obama in Washington to discuss global economic problems, Obama’s staff failed to respond. Eventually, they arranged not a White House interview but, rather, a...

On Thursday, the iconic Gibson Guitar Corporation issued a press release stating that government officials raided their Tennessee manufacturing facility over warrants concerning the legality of the importation of wood purchased from India that they use in their world famous guitars. The wood–which is certified and regulated by the Forest Stewardship Council–is not illegal, but rather subject to a domestic law in India frowns upon the processing of this wood by non-Indians. (Gibson uses American labor for the processing.) Gibson’s press release claims that, while this incident marks the second raid of their facility in around two years, this is...

Democrats have wasted little time blasting Republican vice presidential pick Rep. Paul Ryan over his federal budget plan, but a more obscure part of his record could also draw attention: his relationship with a convicted Wisconsin businessman. Ryan accepted nearly $60,000 in contributions from businessman Dennis Troha and his family, records show. Troha was later indicted on campaign finance charges over an Indian casino he sought to open. During the casino application process, Troha said, Ryan (R-Wis.) called federal regulators at his request. Ryan was not found to have violated any laws, nor was he a target or key figure...

Romney 'is one of their own, and Obama  has been attacking the way they make money' Maybe it comes as a shock to Dear Leader -who expects everyone to march behind him in lockstep right over the precipice- but most of the rest of us could see it coming in the wake of the Team Obama's ill-advised war on capitalism: Wall Street employees are switching-over to Romney in droves... and the revolution is being lead by non other than Jamie Dimon's (who's among Obama's most fervent supporters) Goldman Sachs: Bloomberg- Four years ago, employees of New York-based Goldman gave three-fourths...

It's unlikely that President Barack Obama will be naming any tax proposals after George B. Kaiser. An investment by the Tulsa billionaire's family foundation in Solyndra, whose bankruptcy may leave taxpayers on the hook for $535 million in federal loans, has raised speculation that the administration acted in part to aid a financial supporter. But the impact on taxpayers of Kaiser's career goes far beyond the $535 million loss. Kaiser has built his fortune in part through shrewdly playing the Internal Revenue Code. In one six year period, during which he increased his net worth enough to land him on...

Romney and his super PAC have taken millions from funders with strong green streaks — despite the fact that the former Massachusetts governor has run to the right in the primary, proclaiming doubts about global-warming science and trashing President Barack Obama’s greenhouse gas emissions policies. Julian Robertson, founder of the Tiger Management hedge fund, helped put cap-and-trade legislation on the map with $60 million in contributions over the past decade to the Environmental Defense Fund. Now, Robertson has given $1.25 million to Romney’s Restore our Future super PAC, plus the maximum $2,500 to the Romney campaign. Other green-minded financial backers...

No officials offer to return bank's blood moneyThe fallout from the HSBC money laundering scandal continues to reverberate around the globe, but U.S. Congress members apparently are in no hurry to return millions of dollars they have received from the scandal-plagued bank. WND, which originally broke the story on the HSBC debacle, conducted an analysis of Federal Election Commission records specific to the company political action committee’s generosity toward Congress. The investigation centered upon two congressional panels with primary oversight of the industry: The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing & Urban Affairs, and the House Committee on Financial Services. Since...

Number 25 on a very long list of Obama's misdeeds: The Obama administration gave $535 million to Solyndra, claiming that it would create 4,000 new jobs. However, instead of creating those 4,000 new jobs, the company went bankrupt. It was later revealed that the company’s shareholders and executives had made substantial donations to Obama’s campaign, and that the company had also spent a large sum of money on lobbying. In April 2012, CBS News reported that Solyndra had left a substantial amount of toxic waste at its abandoned facility in Milpitas, California. After Obama gave Raser Technologies $33 million to...

Ben Tribbett, one of the state's top bloggers, got me thinking yesterday. He is known as the guy behind the highly rated political blog Not Larry Sabato. But Ben deserves to be even better known as one of the state's best gurus on election statistics down to the precinct level. Ben has done a lot of mentally "running the numbers" on the potential impact of former Congressman Virgil Goode's run for President as the nominee for the Constitution Party here in Virginia. Ben is likely - and hopefully soon - to do a blog post an Obama-Romney-Goode race here in...

President Barack Obama publicly thanked a man the New York Post called a “gay-porn kingpin” at an Oregon fundraiser on Tuesday, according to the Weekly Standard. While speaking at a Portland campaign fundraiser, Obama thanked Terry Bean for organizing the event. … The (New York) Post said (in 2008), "Bean, the first gay on Sen. Obama's National Finance Committee, is the sole trustee of the Charles M. Holmes Foundation, which owned Falcon Studios, Jock Studios, and Mustang Studios, the producers of about $10 million worth of all-male pornography a year." …

While President Obama is usually the candidate rubbing elbows with Hollywood's celebrities — just this week it was announced the president's campaign would host fundraisers with the cast of "The Wire" and Vogue editor Anna Wintour — Mitt Romney is looking to cash in with some star power of his own. Actor Robert Duvall, star of "Apocalypse Now" and "The Godfather," will host a fundraiser for the Republican presidential hopeful in September at his Virginia home. According to the invitation — obtained Wednesday by the National Journal — tickets to the event are $2,500 per person, while a $10,000 donation...

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Jay Paterno, then the Penn State quarterbacks coach, worked for Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign before the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania in 2008. Paterno helped organize a campus rally and introduced Obama to a big crowd on the sloping lawn in front of Old Main, the university administration building. Obama lost the primary to Sen. Hilary Clinton but won Centre County. Nearly a year ago, on Feb. 2, 2011, President Obama came to Penn State and met Jay’s parents, Nittany Lion head coach Joe Paterno and his wife Sue. On Monday, the day after Joe Paterno succumbed...

Another green company backed by an Obama bundler just bit the dust. After announcing earlier this year that the company would lay off 200 of its 300 employees, solar manufacturer Amonix Inc. closed its operation in North Las Vegas leaving taxpayers in the red by $20 million. Editor's note: We've updated this piece with research from the RNC below, entitiled:  "The Big Payback: Where It All Began," which details the massive payoffs directed to Obama supporters using taxpayer dollars in the guise of "stimulus." “Just seven months after California-based solar power company Amonix Inc. opened its largest manufacturing plant, in North Las Vegas,” reports...

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) says he supports Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin’s re-election because he believes Manchin is not beholden to short-sighted political interests. Coburn recently gave $250 to Manchin’s re-election campaign. “I think he votes thinking about the long-term interests of the country. We don’t agree on everything but he’s a good guy,” Coburn told The Hill.

It’s going to be a very busy month for the Obama Campaign. Fundraisers are scheduled in Switzerland: Sweden: Paris: And Communist China: I’m 41 has more on the Obama fundraiser in Shanghai.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has waded into the same-sex marriage debate in Washington State with a $100,000 contribution to help defeat a referendum that would ban same-sex marriage. Gates, along with Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, both made the same six-figure contribution said Zach Silk, campaign manager for Washington United for Marriage, the group leading the charge for gay activists. "It's going to make a tremendous difference," Silk told The Associated Press. "It's very important for us to have the broad support from business leaders and companies themselves." In addition to Microsoft, other noted Washington State based companies such as Starbucks...

Although California is consistently ranked among the absolute worst states in which to do business --- their nanny-state regulations, budget deficits, and tax structure have earned the state the honorary title of the "ninth circle of business hell" --- it's well-established attraction for venture capital is sometimes cited as a a big factor in keeping the state afloat. Silicon Valley is definitely a well-monied hot spot, but it seems that the typically more liberal execs, entrepreneurs, and engineers are feeling slightly less enthusiastic about an Obama-second term than they were about Hopenchange in 2008, as some of them are starting...