A few brief items from Monday on the campaign trail…

Whatever happened to the elephants’ memory? Terri Hallenbeck of the Freeploid recently received a campaign mailing from Republican state house candidate George Schiavone. And nowhere on the mailer does it say who paid for it. Just the latest in a series of identical violations by Republican candidates this year.  

And considering that we’re hearing about some of them purely by happenstance — an illegal mailing going to an opposing candidate or journalist — you have to wonder if we’re only seeing the tip of the iceberg.

Schiavone’s explanation:

“I goofed,” he said. “I just forgot.”

Uh-huh. Hard to believe, considering that…

Schiavone was in the House for seven terms before stepping down and is now challenging incumbent Democrat Joan Lenes to try to claim his seat back. In other words, he’s no rookie who just didn’t know there were rules about these things.

The topper:  Schiavone has another mailing set to go out. It also doesn’t list the funding source. He says it’s too late to recall and reprint the material. Darn.

After the jump: VPIRG, Miss Daisy, Shummy & Phil.

VPIRG calls for Super PAC reform. It’s good to see others picking up GMD’s concern about Lenore Broughton and Vermonters First. The latest is VPIRG, which is calling for new election laws to better rein in — or at least publicize — the activities of independent Super PACs and wealthy individuals. VPIRG notes the obvious conflicts in Broughton’s outpouring of money on behalf of a single candidate, Wendy Wilton.

VPIRG’s news release points out a possible silver lining in the Miss Daisy cloud: grounds for legal action.

Since Buckley v. Valeo, a consistent majority of the Court has found that the danger of quid pro quo corruption – where candidates are inclined to ingratiate themselves to their wealthy backers – is a valid rationale for limiting direct contributions to candidates. Furthermore, the Court has determined that the mere appearance of corruption, caused by unlimited gifts from contributors to candidates, also warrants contribution limits.

 

“The level of influence being wielded by a single individual in Vermont right now offers more than a whiff of corruption,” said Burns. “It stinks.”

… “Certainly Ms. Wilton is well aware of her patron, and she’s even noted that Ms. Broughton has ‘every right to say good things about me,'” said Burns.  “So if Ms. Wilton is elected, does anyone really believe that she will not owe Ms. Broughton a giant debt of gratitude?”

I’d claim credit for saying that first, but I care less about credit than I do about publicizing the dangers of Broughton’s money bomb wherever possible. VPIRG’s list of reforms:

— Require Super PACs to disclose all contributions within 24 hours of their receipt during the last 30 days before an election.

— Require Super PACs to prominently list their top contributors in all mass-media materials.

— If a single contributor is responsible for more than half of the funding for a Super PAC, then that individual would have to appear in all electronic advertisements, claiming responsibility for them. (Which would be especially troubling to the notoriously camera-shy Broughton.)

VPIRG is also accepting ideas for other election law reforms, with an eye toward working with the Legislature in the coming session. Contact them via their website.

Shumlin goes on tour… with Phil Scott. Aw, dammit. Shummy’s spokesflack Sue Allen notifies the media that the Governor’s schedule has been canceled for Tuesday due to the threat of bad weather. Instead, Shumlin will join Lt. Gov. Phil Scott in visiting areas of the state impacted by Hurricane Sandy.

Normally this would be a nice move. But one week before Election Day? Good God, Shummy, why don’t you just go ahead and endorse Mr. Happy Face? Y’know, if I were Cass Gekas, I’d be calling Shummy to tear him a new one. But I wonder if he’s even accepting her calls.

The Governor only has time for a single victory rally with the members of his own party’s ticket, but he can make room for a Republican on his Sandy Tour. With all due respect, Governor, that sucks.

If I hadn’t just posted my weekly Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down, I know who’d be getting the poke in the eye. Well, there’s always next week.