Fundraising

Chevron might have broken campaign finance laws by donating to a Republican super-PAC, according to watchdog groups.

In October, the oil-and-gas giant donated $2.5 million to the Congressional Leadership Fund, according to federal records. The super-PAC has been tied to Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and was established to defeat House Democratic candidates.

On Tuesday, the advocacy group Public Citizen called upon the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to investigate the donation, claiming the gift violated campaign finance laws that prohibit companies that contract with the federal government from making direct contributions to committees, parties and candidates.

Public Citizen, Friends of the Earth-US, Greenpeace and Oil Change International sent a complaint to the FEC urging regulators to fine both Chevron and Congressional Leadership Fund for the contribution.

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Common Cause urged Obama to shut Organizing for Action, saying that "access to the president should never be for sale."

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Many good-government groups feared the long-standing ban on corporate donations would be overturned.

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Campaign finance watchdogs are floating the idea of a new federal agency to replace the “woefully inept” Federal Election Commission (FEC).

The FEC has become “completely dysfunctional” and is failing to meet its responsibilities to uphold and enforce campaign finance laws, the American Constitution Society said in a new brief.

“We have reached the point where we have the illusion of campaign laws because in reality, there is little or no enforcement of these laws,” Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer and counsel Don Simon wrote.

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The Republican National Committee (RNC) raised $6.9 million in January and has $7.1 million cash on hand, it announced Wednesday afternoon.

The RNC, which did not take on debt at the end of the election cycle, is in much better financial shape than the Democratic National Committee (DNC), which went heavily into debt to help finance its wins in 2012. It's common for party committees to go into debt at the end of election cycles and pay off that debt with early fundraising the next year.

The DNC has yet to release January numbers. At the end of 2012, the DNC had $4.3 million cash on hand and carried $21.5 million in debt.

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The Republican National Committee is challenging the constitutionality of limits a person can donate. 

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Karl Rove defended his decision to launch a new super-PAC aimed at helping more electable candidates through Republican primaries Tuesday, saying critics in the Tea Party were "wrong" to back unpolished candidates.

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Organizers say the group will help back conservative candidates who can also "win general elections."

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The Republican National Committee raised $2.3 million in December and began the new year with $4.7 million cash on hand, it announced on Thursday.

The committee also has no debt, meaning it's in good shape financially heading into the midterm elections. While the RNC is undergoing an internal review on how to improve its ground game, grassroots outreach and candidate recruitment, money is one bright spot for the party.

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Four Democratic senators who are up for reelection in 2014 have joined forces on fundraising.

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Kay Hagan (D-N.C.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Mark Udall (D-Colo.) created a joint fundraising committee last week called Senate Victory 2014, according to Federal Election Commission records.

Hagan is the most vulnerable senator in the group, and could face a tough reelection fight if a strong Republican challenger emerges, according to a recent poll.

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