Actually, the I.G. protection component of the reform package has received early action in the House, according to Aaron Scherb of Common Cause, one of the watchdog groups pushing for these changes.

On Jan. 5, the eve of the Capitol riot, the bipartisan Inspector General Protection Act — introduced by Representatives Ted Lieu, Democrat of California, and Jody Hice, Republican of Georgia — passed the House by voice vote.

The act would help protect inspectors general from retaliation, for example by requiring...

Experts like Jesse Littlewood, vice president of campaigns at the nonpartisan watchdog group Common Cause, say the lack of moderation on apps like Parler is normalizing hate speech and other forms of "toxic" online content.

"These platforms are where individuals can see their worldview reflected and encouraged, even if in complete opposition to the facts," said Littlewood. "This avoidable tragedy [on Wednesday] was fomented for weeks based on the president and his Republican allies amplifying disinformation about the results of...

“Republican lawmakers in a variety of states are using the president's lies as justification for making voting harder and suppressing the vote,” Sylvia Albert, the director of voting and elections at the nonpartisan voting rights group Common Cause, told ABC News.

“Obviously we saw record turnout everywhere and part of that was because access to the ballot was expanded. And obviously nothing is perfect. We would want improvements and improvements should be made, with consultation with election officials and election...

“I’m not the first to say this in a farewell address, and I won’t be the last, but the Senate is broken,” Mr. Udall, Democrat of New Mexico, said on Tuesday in what is likely his final speech after 12 years in the deeply divided institution.

“The Senate is broken,” he repeated for emphasis.

For months, Americans have watched in anger as Congress remained mired in partisan paralysis over more pandemic relief, allowing unemployment benefits to lapse as many suffer from joblessness. Fewer people approve...

Wisconsin has already done its own canvas, which was completed Tuesday and added 181 votes to Biden's haul, Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause Wisconsin, told reporters in a conference call. It's very rare that a recount changes the outcome of an election, and Biden's 20,608-vote margin of victory in Wisconsin makes it extremely unlikely the state would be awarded to Trump, he said.

The Wisconsin recount demand is among a series of efforts the losing Trump campaign has made to challenge the results of the Nov. 3...

Campaign-finance laws were designed to limit the influence of private actors in elections — “to prevent not only the actual corruption of public officials but even the appearance of corruption that could undermine voter faith in government,” as Paul S. Ryan, the vice president of policy and litigation at the election-watchdog group Common Cause, told me.

"He's saying that he needs donors' money for election-challenge litigation, but he's putting the money into an account to be used for his political future," said Paul Ryan, the vice president for policy and litigation at Common Cause.


Fundraising limits are higher for leadership PACs than candidate committees. A donor could only contribute a maximum of $2,800 at this point for a 2024 presidential campaign but can contribute $20,000 to a leadership PAC in four, annual installments by that date, Ryan notes.

Aaron Scherb, the director of legislative affairs at Common Cause, told ABC News on Monday that the "petty and unproductive" decision by GSA to withhold key resources to the Biden transition could have the "potential for catastrophic results." 

"By GSA not signing off on this, there is certainly some classified intelligence information that the incoming administration would not have access to -- and would potentially not be fully prepared on day one to be able to counteract ongoing efforts from our adversaries like all previous...

Suzanne Almeida, the interim executive director of Common Cause Pennsylvania, said "the short answer is, we’re a little bit worried about everything."

But she noted that challenged voters in Pennsylvania can get a witness to verify their identity, or vote with a provisional ballot and later prove their identity.

She said she is part of a large coalition of election protection groups that will have 2,000 volunteers on the ground monitoring the polls and "roving teams" deployed to any problem areas.

In addition to poll workers, election offices and attorney general offices, Common Cause has a hotline, 866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683), with staff who have direct lines to election officials, according to Sylvia Albert, the director of voting and elections for the non-partisan watchdog group Common Cause..

"There are tons of organizations and lawyers who are out there and we have your back," she said.