Free Republic

SACRAMENTO (AP) -- A Superior Court judge excluded a consumer group Wednesday from participating in a lawsuit brought by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his supporters aimed at overturning a limit on campaign contributions. Sacramento Judge Michael Virga ruled that the California Public Interest Research Group, CalPIRG, does not have legal arguments significantly different from the those of the defendant, the California Fair Political Commission, and shouldn't be part of the case. CalPIRG wanted to join the suit to help defend a contribution limit the commission imposed last summer that closed a loophole in Proposition 34, a voter-approved measure that restricted...

SACRAMENTO (AP) - Attorneys representing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and some of his closest political allies are putting up an aggressive challenge to stop a consumer group from helping to defend a state limit on campaign contributions. The California Public Interest Research Group, CalPIRG, has filed a request in Sacramento Superior Court to intervene in support of a state rule that limits how much money donors can give to a candidate-controlled committee. With a hearing on the issue set for Friday, attorneys representing the governor and the Citizens to Save California, a political action committee organized by Schwarzenegger supporters, have filed...