Will Smith Urged Obama White House to Free T.I.

Smith was 'politely told' Obama would not free T.I., rapper tells Billboard
Will Smith applauds Barack Obama at Nobel Peace Prize ceremony (AP)

Will Smith, star of Seven Pounds and a major political donor to President Barack Obama, attempted to use his influence in the White House to get rapper T.I. released from prison, according to an interview with T.I. in Billboard.

The Corzine Collapse

Democrat Jon Corzine ran MF Financial into the ground, congressional report says
Jon Corzine / AP

Former New Jersey Democratic Senator and major Democratic donor Jon Corzine caused MF Global’s downfall, according to a House investigative report issued Thursday.

Foreign Funds

Obama campaign under fire for possible overseas donations
AP Images

A groundbreaking report published Monday raises startling questions about the Obama campaign’s potentially illegal practice of accepting and soliciting online donations from foreign nationals, experts say.

Tester’s New Friends

Montana Senator has raised $1.8M from bankers, lobbyists
Sen. Jon Tester / AP

Sen. Jon Tester (D., Mont.) is bankrolling his reelection campaign with huge contributions from the bankers, lobbyists, and insiders he blasted during his first Senate run in 2006.

ProPublica Donor Gets Pass—from ProPublica

Liberal millionaire and major Obama bundler Jeffrey Katzenberg receives little scrutiny from nonprofit journalism group
Jeffrey Katzenberg / AP

A spokesman for ProPublica responded Tuesday to charges that the nonprofit journalism outfit devotes most of its investigations to donors of Republican and conservative causes while largely ignoring similarly influential donors on the left end of the political spectrum—including one donor to ProPublica itself.

Obama’s Swiss Backers

President Obama, George Clooney / AP

The Obama campaign’s Swiss backers will gather to raise money today in Geneva. Charles Adams, a lawyer based in Geneva, and Matthew Barzum, former ambassador to Sweden and Obama’s national finance chairman, will host the fundraiser.

The Biggest Myth of 2012

Column: It’s the idea that liberal donors don’t ask for anything in return
AP Images

I don’t know whether President Obama or Mitt Romney will win on November 6, but I do know what the MSNBC talking heads will say in the event that Obama loses.

Former Obama Adviser Takes the Fifth

Former trade adviser and Democratic donor allegedly involved in an illicit gold deal
Kase Lawal

A former Obama administration trade adviser accused of plotting to purchase $10 million in gold from a Congolese warlord refused to detail his role in the illegal plot, invoking the Fifth Amendment more than 100 times during confidential court testimony, according to documents obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.

Insourcing the Outsourcers’ Cash

Billionaire Obama, Democratic donor made fortune outsourcing
Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs / AP

One of the largest donors to the pro-Obama Super PAC Priorities USA is the founder and former CEO of a company that pioneered the practice of shipping work overseas.