“The eyes of the world will focus on Britain tonight — and they should “B” prepared for the greatest show ever seen. The very Best of British will be on display as the 2012 Olympic Games finally kick off with a dazzling £27million opening ceremony viewed by billions across the globe.” - The Sun, 7/26/12

A few weeks ago we posted that our long awaited “Advisory Opinion Request” (AOR) with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) was finally live and online. Such requests are standard for any person, or organization, that will be taking actions that may fall under regulations set forth by the FEC regarding elections. It’s a interesting and fascinating process, and can save you a lot of headaches (and fines) by making sure everything is kosher before you, say, build a business. 

Well, we just got word today that the FEC’s general counsel has presented a draft version of the Advisory Opinion (AO). And, it was great, great news for us. Essentially everything we plan to do is permissible under the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA), and is — really — about everything we could have hoped for. 

Needless to say, we’re doing a little bit of a “happy dance” right now. 

To read a copy of the draft(s), you can download the .pdf here. 

The FEC will be taking public comment on the draft AO, and then will have a public hearing we’re skimmerhat will be participating remotely, and answering any questions the Commissioners may have regarding the facts of our plan. This is scheduled to take place on Aug. 2. Then, after that, they will vote on whether to approve one of the two drafts (the difference between the two being if skimmerhat must charge candidates a fee for access to manage their candidate profiel; one says we do, the other says we don’t). We expect to hear back officially the second week in August. 

So, cross your fingers the good news keeps coming in. And, thanks again for all your support. 

“Blistering heat blanketed much of the eastern United States for the third straight day on Sunday, after violent storms that took at least 15 lives and knocked out power to more than 3 million customers.” - Reuters, 7/2/12

The skimmerhat AOR is officially up on the FEC’s website, as shown in the picture above. If you click this link (http://saos.nictusa.com/saos/searchao) and then go to “Pending Advisory Opinion Requests,” you can read it there.

We are pretty excited to hear the ruling/outcome from the FEC. Stay tuned!

— Spencer

“If you want to understand why this primary season has — and will — continue to drag on look no further than this finding: 74 percent of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents expect Mitt Romney to be the GOP nominee, but just 31 percent want to see him win the nomination.” - ABC News, 3/12/12

An “ambivalent electorate.” That’s how a recent post at ABC News’ “The Note” describes the American public as we quickly approach the 2012 elections. The article describes the American public as “more resigned than inspired,” saying the electorate “knows it will ultimately be forced to choose between two candidates that they don’t believe are up for the job ahead.”

I have to say, that’s a pretty dismal outlook on what is supposed to be one of the best examples of democracy in the world. Yet, it seems to be all too true, and not relegated to the presidential contest alone.

All across the nation Americans are failing to be inspired by its leaders; both those in office, and those running against them. The current RealClearPolitics average for Congressional approval rating is 11.3 percent approving (82.5 percent disapproving). Now, compare that to the voter turn-out in 2010: it was just 37.8 percent. 

So, while barely 1 out of 10 Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, less than 4 out of 10 Americans show up to midterm elections where something can be done about it. Some may call that laziness and, surely, that’s got something to do with. However, one has to think that if there were more inspiring candidates, a greater number of voters would be motivated to show up to the polls — either to keep leaders in office, or help put them there. 

Instead, such as the ABC News article describes, Americans begrudgingly accept their fate, and voting becomes more of a patriotic chore than an emotionally led decision. 

That’s depressing. 

Things don’t have to be that way. We, as individual citizens, can make a huge difference in the way our country is run, if we only first start taking action to cause change.

First, get involved. Try volunteering with a local candidate with whom you truly believe in. More than likely, they can use the help. There is a huge emotional boost by getting down in the trenches to help elect a person in whom you truly believe can do a good job in office. Even if the odds seem stacked against your candidate, help anyway. 

The government that most impacts your life is local government, so there is a personal incentive to get active and involved (think seat belt laws, smoking regulations, sales tax, local environmental regulations, etc.). You don’t have to work on a federal campaign to make a difference in your community. But you do have to “work.” 

Second, donate. Futhermore, donate far, wide and often. You may not think that the challenger to a 10-term incumbent in a state on the other side of the nation may make a difference, but federal laws passed by Congress are just that: federal. That means everybody’s representatives have some sort of impact on your life with the legislation they sponsor and vote on. The guy challenging that incumbent may be the person who most closely aligns with your views. Chip-in $10 or $20 to that candidate’s campaign. Low-dollar donations can go a long way in helping to elect good people to office.

Right now it’s difficult to intuitively find and align with candidates from across the nation who match your values, but that’s what skimmerhat is planning to change. So, stay tuned to what we’re building, and very soon you’ll be involved in campaigns across the country. 

You’ll finally be able to take the keys to our Republic back from the establishment. And, finally, you may be inspired again.

- Andrew