Dataviz by Sunlight

Shining a light on DC campaign finance

Over the last two years, money from 47 other states has poured into DC municipal contests, raising intriguing questions about what interest contributors might have in races where the debate often centers around parking restrictions, charter schools and creating dog parks. Our analysis shows that contributions from outside DC made up 30 percent of the funding used to fuel local political campaigns.

We’ve just added several years worth of D.C. campaign finance data into Influence Explorer. Dig in here.

As Congress inches toward major immigration legislation, a new Sunlight Foundation analysis (based on almost 8,000 lobbying reports) offers a comprehensive and interactive guide to the web of interests with something at stake.

The magnified images of several clusters display heavy lobbying interactions between related special interest groups (white circles) and the immigration issues and legislation they have frequently sought to influence (colored circles).

Download a map of the best cherry blossom locations

The first official day of spring heralds the arrival of the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which begins today and continues through April 14. There aren’t any blossoms yet — in fact, the National Park Service revised its peak bloom prediction to April 3-6 — but there are plenty of blossom-related events, beginning with tonight’s Pink Tie Party.

What if “inside the Beltway” were a city?

If “Inside the Beltway” , how would it compare to other major cities? It would be ~~almost the size of Los Angeles but half as dense~~ a little larger in area than Chicago but less dense than Los Angeles.

Road Closures, Vehicle Restricted Areas for Inauguration

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Secret Service have institute the following vehicle access and parking restrictions for today’s Inauguration activities. You can download the full list (PDF) or the map above (PDF)

How the Parties Flip-Flopped on the Debt Ceiling

Because of some the work we’ve done before on last minute negotiations and divided government, Sunlight prepared the following graphic that visualizes the recent history of US House votes on the debt ceiling, based on public voting records and a CRS report.

We’ll have more commentary forthcoming, but here are a few initial thoughts on what this graphic makes clear:

Opposition to raising the debt ceiling is often partisan, with opposition coming from either party, based on who is in the White House. Many House Republicans have voted for raising the ceiling, just as President Obama voted against it when he was a Senator.

Divided government has necessitated support from both parties to raise the limit.

There is a significant untold story about the Gephardt Rule, a House Rule which enabled the limit to be raised with little public record. The role this rule played in setting up the current showdowns has been insufficiently examined.

Good access to congressional data and reports enables this kind of analysis; it could be improved.

Each of these votes was a predictable consequence of budgets that were passed before them, demonstrating another facet of political hypocrisy.

The Age of Obama: Timelapse of President Barack Obama over four years in office

Time roughs up presidents. Photos of Barack Obama on Election Night 2008 look like they were taken much longer ago. Now his face has deeper creases and crow’s feet, while his hair has turned white. “You look at the picture when they’re inaugurated and four years later, they’re visibly older,” said Connie Mariano, White House physician from 1992 to 2001. “It’s like they went in a time machine and fast-forwarded eight years in the span of four years.”

Political war profiteers: 20 consulting firms churn 80 percent of super PAC cash

In the three years since the Supreme Court’s Jan. 21, 2010 ruling in Citizens United, the super PACs that the decision helped spawn have largely been seen as advertising machines. But an anniversary-eve analysis by the Sunlight Foundation show that they have created a class of super consultants.

Of the $620 million that super PACs doled out during the 2012 campaign cycle, records filed with the Federal Election Commission as of Dec. 6 reveal that 80 percent was spent through just 20 consulting firms. As the graphic above illustrates, a tightly interwoven network of Washington insiders reaped the biggest benefits of Citizens United and subsequent decisions that gave rise to a new class of outsider-insiders who have become a new political establishment.

thisisjamesj:

The official WMATA transit map (designed for clarity & legibility) vs. the actual geographical layout of the DC Metro

Metro_Compared (by Don Whiteside)

Inauguration planning begins in earnest at Armory

Military and National Guard officials held a press conference to detail some of the 2014 Inauguration plans at the Armory in D.C., using a 40 by 60 foot map of the National Mall and its surrounding areas to plan logistics and staging.

When It Comes to Pay, All Feds Aren’t Created Equal

It comes as little surprise to hill watchers that House staff are underpaid compared to their Senate equivalents, let alone executive branch and private sector staff, but we decided to dig a bit deeper. Just in time for the holidays (and those non-existent public sector bonuses) here’s a comparison of key positions in the House, Senate, and executive branch. We admit that the data is a bit old, like the Ghost of the War on Christmas Past, but it’s the best we can do with what’s available.

Another reason for a fiscal cliff standstill: too many safe seats?

As “fiscal cliff” negotiations continue to slow to a standstill, Americans might be feeling frustrated about the inability of their representatives to reach a compromise. Wasn’t the election supposed to settle the argument?

There are many reasons to explain the intransigence. Last week, we documented the ubiquitous lobbying on tax and budget issues that will almost certainly complicate any attempt to reach a deal.

But there’s another factor to keep in mind: The majority of members of Congress have relatively homogenous constituencies. That means they’re probably hearing overwhelmingly from only one side of the argument back home, and facing limited pressure to find a compromise.

Will lobbyists complicate “fiscal cliff” deal-making?

As the wheeling and dealing around the “fiscal cliff” continues to envelop Washington, thousands of lobbyists representing more than a billion dollars are watching, and getting ready to complicate any potential deal.

After all, any grand bargain on spending and revenue will go right at the heart of two of the most heavily-lobbied issues in Washington: budget and taxes. Pick any tax loophole or any budget line item, and there’s almost certainly a lobbyist there to pressure deal-makers to pick a different loophole or budget item. Pick that loophole or budget item, and, well, you get the idea…

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