Posted by AzBlueMeanie:
The California Supreme Court issued an order late Sunday to allow California's political watchdog to identify contributors to an Arizona group's last-minute infusion of $11 million to the campaigns opposing Gov. Jerry Brown's tax initiative and supporting an antiunion measure on Tuesday's ballot. Late drama over donations:
After ordering written arguments through the weekend, the state's high court on Sunday unanimously lifted a stay that had prevented the FPPC from examining the Arizona group's records to determine whether the contributions were intended for a California campaign. Such a finding would enable the commission to order the nonprofit to identify its donors.
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But the Arizona group declined to turn over its records by the court's 4 p.m. deadline and said it would appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. The group asked the state's high court to suspend its order in the meantime, but the justices declined.
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[T]he commission's chairwoman, Ann Ravel, said the group's lawyer told an FPPC attorney it would not turn over the records Sunday. Instead, the group went back to the state's high court and asked for another stay until 9 a.m. Monday while it appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. The court denied the request less than an hour later.
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The developments reduced the likelihood that the donors will be publicly identified before Tuesday, when the California ballot will include Proposition 30, Brown's measure to increase income and sales taxes to fund schools and other programs, and Proposition 32, which would prohibit unions from spending payroll-deducted dues on political campaigns.
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A state lawyer told the California court that the Arizona group was in contempt of court and "must immediately produce these records."
Ravel said it was another indication that Americans for Responsible Leadership "is not going to disclose what the people of the state have a right to know."
The court should hold the lawyers for Americans for Responsible Leadership in contempt and order them to jail until they comply with the court's order. Let's see if they are willing to do jail time for the plutocrats they are representing.
UPDATE: Justice Anthony Kennedy has authority over Western states and can issue a stay in this case. The L.A. Times reports that: At risk of being in contempt of the state court, lawyers for the
nonprofit said they would begin an "attempt to comply with the order."
SCOTUSblog has not yet posted aything about a petition for stay.
