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Full episode
461: Take the Money and Run for Office
Act Two

PAC Men

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Everything about political fundraising is changing right now, because of the 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission. Since then, "Super PACs" have been able to funnel huge amounts of anonymous money into races. Producer Ben Calhoun shares the example of Ami Bera, whose run for Congress was dramatically affected by money from a Super PAC. (15 minutes).

By

Ben Calhoun

Song:

“If You've Got The Money, I've Got the Time” by Jo Stafford

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633: Our Town - Part Two
Dec. 15, 2017

Act Four: Let’s Do the Numbers

One of the things we were excited to investigate when we went to Alabama was to answer the question at the heart of the immigration debate: what does it cost taxpayers when we let in millions of immigrants, documented and undocumented? In Albertville, how much was it? We asked economist Kim Rueben and her colleague Erin Huffer to run the numbers.
599: Seriously?
Oct. 21, 2016

Act Three: Aw, Do We NAFTA?

Ira explains that when Donald Trump, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton all seemed to be against free trade agreements, he got genuinely confused.
513: 129 Cars
Dec. 13, 2013

Act Eight

The last day of the month continues and the truism is accurate: some people get great deals because it’s the end of the month and they have to hit their goal.

More by Ben Calhoun

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760: A City Walks Into an Investigation
Jan. 28, 2022

Act One: Chief Lewis Adds It Up

The police chief in Muskegon conducts his own personal investigation into Officer Anderson’s interactions with Black people on the job.
737: The Daily
May 14, 2021

Act One: How Do You Get To Carnegie Hall?

Producer Ben Calhoun investigates a daily mystery—a daily musical mystery. (15 minutes)
725: Turkey in a Face Mask
Nov. 27, 2020

Act One: Dead Ringer

A while ago, a farmer walked through a pork processing plant in Oklahoma with a friend who managed it.
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