Free Republic

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff and former California Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham are among the many Republicans whose ethical misconduct have prompted Democratic strategists to conclude that the Republican-run Congress has fostered a “culture of corruption.” But in the run-up to an April 11 special election in California’s 50th District, which Cunningham vacated after pleading guilty to federal corruption charges, it is a Democrat — Francine Busby, an educator and school board trustee — who has had to defend herself against Republican attempts to link her to lobbyists. The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) this week unleashed a television attack on Busby,...

SAN MARCOS ----- There's been a deluge of TV advertising, extensive newspaper and TV coverage and one candidate forum after the other. And yet, one can only wonder how many voters have had the time or energy to educate themselves on the qualifications, political beliefs and personalities of all of the 18 candidates in the running for the 50th District Congressional seat formerly held by disgraced Republican Randy "Duke" Cunningham. With less than three weeks until the April 11 special election to pick a temporary replacement for Cunningham, the latest opportunity for voters to get to know the candidates came...

Republican Congressional candidate and millionaire Eric Roach on Friday notified the Federal Election Commission and competing candidates in the 50th District race that he has surpassed the self-funding limit that triggers the so-called "Millionaire's Amendment." That little-known rule allows competing candidates, in some cases, to triple the limit on individual campaign donations. In Roach's notification, he reports that as of Thursday, he had spent $750,000 on the April 11 special election where voters will pick a replacement for former U.S. Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham, who resigned from office in November after pleading guilty in federal court to receiving more than...

An election schedule to replace disgraced former Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham caused at least one candidate to drop out of the 50th District race yesterday and could force those seeking the seat to run in as many as up to three races in two months. Candidates will vie in a special primary election April 11 to serve the last six months of Cunningham's term. Then, on June 6, there could possibly be a runoff, the same day as a separate primary for the full two-year term. "We're sort of in uncharted waters," said Joe Justin, a consultant for state Sen....