But the major conservative groups believe grass-roots organizing is best left to Romney and the Republican National Committee.
“A lot of us don’t think it’s efficient for outside groups to do ground-game activities,” said one super PAC official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss strategy. “The campaign finance laws are set up to allow the parties to do that, and we believe they do it quite well. Our added value will be on the airwaves.”
Explore the candidates’ campaign finances
More from PostPolitics
THE FIX | At the moment, the three scandals consuming the Obama administration don't quite measure up to Watergate.
FACT CHECKER | Attorney General Eric Holder said a U.S. attorney made his own decision not to pursue a criminal prosecution of Holder. But he got that wrong.
VIDEO | The future remains uncertain for 11 million people living illegally in the U.S. Though immigration reform seems closer than it has ever been before, can Washington and the Obama administration effectively repair 30 years of broken policies?
Labor organizations have long been shackled by limits on their political activity that required them to confine much of their canvassing and get-out-the-vote effort to union members, whose numbers have been steadily dwindling.
But now, unions have concluded they can ignore such restrictions under the 2010 Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission , which freed corporations and unions to spend unlimited funds on elections.
The ruling paved the way for the super PACs that have had enormous success, particularly among conservatives, in raising money from wealthy donors with no restrictions. But labor lawyers say the decision also means that unions can use their treasury funds to encourage nonunion members to vote for specific candidates, a tactic that was barred under previous laws.
“It’s always been the bread and butter of labor that we had our ground game, but this really expands the possibilities,” said Eddie Vale, spokesman for Workers’ Voice, a super PAC formed by the AFL-CIO that plans to focus on grass-roots organizing.
Democrats are relying on such efforts to help counter the high-dollar fundraising of conservative groups. Three of the leading organizations backing Romney and other Republicans — American Crossroads, Restore Our Future and the American Action Network — plan to spend well over $300 million between now and November. Tens of millions more will be spent by Republican-leaning interest groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Jonathan Collegio, a spokesman for the American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS groups, said independent conservative groups are “a counterbalance to the long-term influence that labor unions have had on the political process for decades. . . . What’s going on on the right is clearly balanced out by the labor unions.”
The environmental lobby is also a major player on the left. The League of Conservation Voters, for example, is planning a mix of grass-roots organizing and media buys, including a pro-Obama ad campaign to be launched next week.
Union leaders are coy about their specific plans but say they hope to match the estimated $450 million spent by unions and their political action committees in 2008.
The biggest spender, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, says it expects to surpass the $93 million it spent four years ago on federal, state and local elections. Another major player, the National Education Association, a teachers union, also hopes to beat its 2008 total of $50 million, officials said.
“There are so many different ways to go at voters, but at some point what’s really going to matter is who’s in your network, who’s in your community, and who do you trust?” said Carrie Pugh, campaign manager for the 3.2 million-member NEA. “We are banking on our members.”
The Post Most: PoliticsMost-viewed stories, videos and galleries int he past two hours
Loading...
Comments