“If the court orders additional proceedings in the district court, holding trial before the election will become virtually impossible,” said a brief supporting Mr. Smith from Common Cause, a watchdog group.

Aaron Scherb, senior director of legislative affairs at good government watchdog Common Cause, agreed with Fischer’s assessment that the payments may violate reporting and corporate contribution laws.

“By a legal sleight of hand, it appears that Trump world is trying to hide the true recipients of these donations,” Scherb told The Daily Beast. He noted that corporations aren’t allowed to donate directly to these committees, and that corporations can’t reimburse contributors. The payments, Scherb said, must be...

„Das öffentliche Interesse an den Geschehnissen auf dieser Reise ist enorm“, sagte John M. Marion, Geschäftsführer von Common Cause Rhode Island, und wies darauf hin, dass einer der ehemaligen Staatsbeamten, David Patten, kürzlich von der staatlichen Ethikkommission mit einer Geldstrafe von $5.000 belegt wurde, weil er während dieser Reise ein kostenloses Mittagessen in einem gehobenen sizilianischen Restaurant angenommen hatte. „Ein großartiges Beispiel dafür, wie öffentliche Aufzeichnungen uns Informationen liefern, die Regierungsbeamte zur Verantwortung ziehen.“

Katya Ehresman, Programmmanagerin für Wahlrechte bei Common Cause Texas, merkte an, dass einige Bundesstaaten Schulen belohnen, die Schüler registrieren. Tennessee würdigt Schulen, die eine bestimmte Wählerregistrierungsschwelle erreichen, und Pennsylvania beispielsweise verleiht einen Gouverneurspreis für bürgerschaftliches Engagement, um Schulen zu ehren, die 851.000 wahlberechtigte Schüler registrieren.

Common Cause empfiehlt außerdem, dass das Büro des Außenministers jeder Schule einen Antrag auf Wählerregistrierung per Post zuschickt, anstatt von den Schulen zu verlangen, diese zweimal jährlich anzufordern.

Government watchdog group Common Cause has long championed net neutrality protections, arguing that the rules protect the public's right to the equal access of publicly-funded internet infrastructure.

“The internet is a gateway to democracy for many and every voter has the right to a free and fair internet. From looking up information about candidates to finding polling sites, this net neutrality proposal will make it easier for every voter to participate in our modern democracy. We strongly encourage the FCC to restore net...

Annastacia Belladonna-Carrera, executive director of Common Cause Minnesota, a nonprofit that advocates for government transparency, also had concerns. She said, "Sen. Hoffman's use of this title for marketing his consulting business as 'senator', along with the use of pictures taken while at the Capitol campus, can arguably be seen as him leveraging his public role for private gain."

Belladonna-Carrera suggested the legislative branch could benefit from having clearer rules for lawmakers.

"This branch of...

“In the April elections Wisconsin tends to have low turnout, and not many people are going to look at these [closely]. Maybe they’ll read it and think, ‘yeah, that sounds reasonable,’” Jay Heck, the executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin, the state’s branch of the national nonpartisan government watchdog group, said ahead of the results. “But they are both the product of election denial.”

Their impact could be notable, Heck suggested. With avenues for additional funding roped off, and with the scope of who...

Common Cause North Carolina forderte den Gesetzgeber am Dienstag dazu auf, die Nachfrist wieder einzuführen, mit der Begründung, dass dadurch sichergestellt werde, dass Wähler, die ihre Stimme per Post abgeben, nicht durch Postverspätungen, auf die sie keinen Einfluss haben, benachteiligt würden.

“I’m thrilled to see it,” said Heather Ferguson, a Kansan who is director of operations for the government transparency group Common Cause. “It helps to rebuild some of the trust with the public in their elected officials and in their institutions and in the legislative process in general.”

In some offices and hallways under the Kansas Statehouse’s copper dome, the response to the new practice has been less enthusiastic than Ferguson’s reaction, though lobbyists won’t publicly criticize it. Eric Stafford, who...

Jay Heck, the executive director Common Cause Wisconsin, the state’s branch of the national nonpartisan government watchdog group, added that the consequences could be dire if the right mix of circumstances were to emerge on or following Election Day.

“It could all explode,” he said.

The April 2 primary ballot in Wisconsin will ask voters to decide on two proposed constitutional amendments that critics contend are byproducts of conspiracy theories touted by election deniers.

“[Passage of...