The ad Public Campaign Action Fund's Campaign Money Watch project released yesterday on Colorado Senate candidate Bob Schaffer's connections to Jack Abramoff and campaign contributions from factory owners in the Northern Mariana Islands got some attention from Colorado press, including the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post. Apparently, Schaffer's campaign manager is a little steamed.

Public Campaign Action Fund's Campaign Money Watch project is rolling out a new ad today to hold Colorado Senate candidate Bob Schaffer (R) accountable for a $13,000 junket he took (courtesy of Jack Abramoff) while in Congress to the Northern Mariana Islands where factories are notorious for abusing their largely female workforce. Schaffer must have been too busy parasailing on Abramoff's dime to note these abuses. He later received thousands in campaign contributions from the factory owners. See the ad and petition campaign here.

It's totally David Donnelly day in the papers -- this op-ed for the Denver Post, authored by David in his capacity as Director of Public Campaign Action Fund's Campaign Money Watch project, goes in to the relationship with convicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff that Colorado Senate candidate, and former U.S. Representative Bob Schaffer (R) would rather keep quiet. And its no wonder, dealings with Abramoff have sunk more than a few political careers.

The Denver Post is concerned about groups and individuals finding sneakier ways to circumvent the spirit of campaign finance regulations. Not sold on the Clean Elections solution to money's pervasive influence on politics, the Post advocates better transparency about where the money funding the ads, mailings, calls, and events is coming from.

A big loophole allows corporations to pour money into the Democratic and Republican nominating conventions in exchange for access to lawmakers. The Denver Post examines the scramble for money in the 2008 host cities, Denver and Minneapolis and finds discomfort among both those raising the money and those giving it about what is going on.

Nancy Watzman, our Colorado-based research and investigative projects director, has this piece in The Denver Post on the potential to make real progress in passing Clean Elections-style full public financing for congressional elections - something she'd like to hear more about from Colorado's represenatatives in Congress.