American Crossroads, a 527 group founded in March by Karl Rove, is trying to make a big impact during the midterm election cycle. The conservative organization raised
$14.5 million in August, money they quickly funneled into several key
U.S. Senate races. Illinois' U.S. Senate nominee, U.S. Rep. Mark, has
benefited. The group has already aired commercials attacking Democratic
nominee Alexi Giannoulias and they followed up their first effort with another ad buy today. According to Fox Chicago, "their ads are fast paced, the message is often negative and the facts are not always accurate."
There's just one problem: nearly 75 percent of the buy was paid for by undisclosed donors. Democracy 21 and the Campaign Legal Center have now filed a joint complaint
with the IRS for allegedly violating U.S. tax laws that limit the
political activities of non-profit groups. Kirk has said he hasn't seen
the ads. During the Tribune debate yesterday, he also declined
to run only positive spots for the remainder of the campaign. In a
statement this afternoon, Giannoulias asks whether the congressman will
"continue to turn a blind eye to this dirty, corporate-funded machine."
It seems like a valid question.
