Someone is spending hundreds of thousands of dollars trying to rig the rules of the presidential election against Obama. But the source of the money is a mystery.

-By Nick Baumann

November 2, 2011- Over the past six months, someone—or a group of someones—has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to fund an effort to change the rules of the 2012 presidential election to make it very difficult for President Barack Obama to win reelection. But the shadowy lobbying group mounting this campaign hasn't disclosed its donors—and under current law, it doesn't have to.

In two states, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, GOP legislators have introduced bills that would change how electoral votes—a candidate needs 270 of the 538 to win the presidency—are awarded in a presidential election. Under the current system, the winner of the statewide popular vote receives all of the electoral votes from that state.

Following this rant, Dylan Ratigan was not seen on his program for two weeks. Conicidence?

-by Paul Blumenthal

September 26, 2011- WASHINGTON -- In the span of a week in September, two independent political committees announced unheard-of fundraising plans for the coming campaign season. The Karl Rove-linked American Crossroads, along with its sister nonprofit, Crossroads GPS, announced a plan to raise and spend $240 million in 2012. Make Us Great Again, a group solely dedicated to electing Texas Gov. Rick Perry the 45th President of the United States, revealed a plan to spend $55 million in the Republican primary alone. Both of these multimillion dollar plans would break all reported records for spending by an independent political committee, and offer a sign of how campaign finance rules have been upended.

Campaign denies knowledge of illegal donations funneled from German businessman.

-By Adam Crisp

September 19, 2011- A Mount Pleasant business owner faces a multi-count federal indictment for a scheme to donate thousands of dollars in illegal campaign money to the re-election campaign of U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham.

Federal authorities allege in April indictments that were unsealed Monday that Jian-Yun “John” Dong took more than $30,000 from a German national and funneled the money through illegal sources from 2007-09 to support Graham’s re-election campaign.

He also used money from the German businessman to make donations to the Graham’s political action committee Fund for America’s Future.

Graham’s campaign on Monday said they have cooperated with investigators and they noted that in the indictment it notes that the campaign was not aware of the violations.

“Campaign officials met with authorities in October 2010 and provided information pertinent to the investigation,” said Thad Westbrook, treasurer of Lindsey Graham for Senate and Fund for America’s Future. “Our campaign has and will continue to cooperate fully with the investigation."