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CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Police in Charlotte said 13 Salvation Army donation kettles were stolen at gunpoint late Friday night. Police said two armed men covering their faces entered the business at 4300 Stuart Andrew Blvd. just after 10 p.m. Two employees were held at gunpoint while the property was taken, police said. Jim Price, of the Salvation Army, said the kettles held an estimated total of $4,000.

In one fell swoop, the ACLU lost 25% of it's funding with the loss of a single donor. Another large recipient from the same donor, the Sierra Club, has also been advised of their funding cuts. David Gelbaum, a wealthy conservationist out of California, has donated about $389 million to the ACLU, the Sierra Club, as well as an organization that provides services to military personnel from 2005 to 2009. David Gelbaum, a major donor to the Sierra Club Foundation, the American Civil Liberties Union and an organization that provides services to military personnel, said he would cut donations next...

NEW YORK (AP) - The American Civil Liberties Union has lost a quarter of its yearly donations after a major donor cut off $19 million in annual donations because of economic difficulties. David Gelbaum, a wealthy California conservationist, said he was indefinitely stopping the donations that had made him the New York-based group's largest anonymous donor

Executives at Comcast, the media behemoth looking to buy a 51 percent stake in NBC Universal, have given large sums of money to presidential candidate Barack Obama and Democrats in recent years The Hill reported Saturday: Comcast chief executive Brian Roberts made more than $76,000 in political contributions to Democrats since 2006, compared to $13,500 in contributions to Republicans. Comcast vice president and top lobbyist David Cohen made about $180,000 to Democrats in the same period, compared to $12,000 to Republicans, according to OpenSecrets.org.

Concerns that the chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee may have used a credit card bill to woo donations from credit card companies has prompted the chamber's ethics panel to open an investigation. The Washington Post first reported on Friday that staffers to Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) suspected foul play as early as this summer, after the committee unexpectedly took up a tough bill that would have implemented new fees to protect against credit card identity theft. According to the Post, Thompson collected about $15,000 in donations from the industry shortly after those hearings began, but no bill was...

Spc. Adam Butler, of Summersville, W.Va., passes a pre-packaged bag of food to Saad Hawas Salim, at a mosque in the Zaydon marketplace, Nov. 23. American troops delivered 100 bags for distribution to the needy just in time for Eid al-Adha. Photo by Spc. Ruth McClary, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team. BAGHDAD — Military vehicles carrying a harvest of pre-packaged foods pulled up to the Salim Molaw Abu Hathafa Mosque in the Zaydon marketplace here, Nov. 23, just in time for Eid al-Adha. U.S. troops delivered 300 packages containing cooking oil, flour, tortillas, beans, canned meat, canned tomatoes, and powdered...

A local architecture firm that recently won an $8.3 million federal contract to redesign a U.S. border crossing in California is being investigated by the Federal Election Commission for irregular campaign contributions to Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, who is up for re-election next year. Henderson resident Randy Spitzmesser prompted the FEC probe of his former employer, Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects. On behalf of the architecture firm, Las Vegas attorney Stan Hunterton told the Las Vegas Review-Journal by fax last month, "We do not believe that anything was intentionally done wrong" regarding campaign finances. Spitzmesser also thinks Henderson-based Tate Snyder...

Sacramento real estate developer Eleni Tsakopoulos-Kounalakis and her husband have contributed $438,880 to federal candidates, committees and leadership PACs since 1989, with 95 percent of the money going to Democratic candidates and committees, according to a new report by the Center for Responsive Politics (CRP) Last Friday, President Barack Obama announced that Tsakopoulos-Kounalakis is his choice to become the new ambassador to Hungary. She is married to Markos Kounalakis, who is the president of Washington Monthly.

CONTINGENCY OPERATING BASE BASRA, Iraq, Oct. 14, 2009 – U.S. troops and reconstruction team members in Iraq’s Basra province completed what some say was a small task with a huge impact on improving the lives of some Iraqi families with disabled children. Army Master Sgt. David Deuel assembles one of 20 wheelchairs donated to the provincial reconstruction team in Iraq’s Basra province by Wheelchairs for Iraqi Kids, a nonprofit group created to meet the needs of Iraqi children who suffer from mobility-limiting disabilities. U.S. Army photo by Spc. Maurice A. Galloway  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. In a combined...

WASHINGTON, Oct. 1, 2009 – Sometime around Thanksgiving some troops in Iraq and Afghanistan will receive boxes filled with gifts from a women’s group in Alexandria, Va. A child’s card stands among donated items at an Alexandria, Va., service project to fill boxes for troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, Sept. 26, 2009. Courtesy photo by Wendi Maney   (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. For the first time in 15 years of doing fall service projects, the Mount Vernon Relief Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints donated granola and energy bars, mints, toothbrushes, toothpaste and other...

When contributors hand over money to a trade group that’s lobbying on a bill before Congress, the public has a right to know who’s putting up that cash, a federal appeals panel has ruled. In an opinion issued Tuesday, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a relatively recent law requiring public donor lists. The National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) had challenged the disclosure provision in the 2007 ethics overhaul law (PL 110-81), arguing that the First Amendment’s guarantee of the right to petition Congress means that financial backers of lobbying...

8/24/2009 - JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq (AFNS) -- The pint-sized bags of cloudy, yellow liquid may not look like much, but the fluid inside them has proved to be a lifesaving substance to injured servicemembers. "Platelets heal. I've seen it firsthand," said Lt. Col. Thomas Jordan, the 332nd Expeditionary Medical Support Squadron platelet aphaeresis chief. "I was here in 2006 when we first brought platelets into modern warfare by using them (at Joint Base Balad)," Colonel Jordan said. "We noticed an increase in the survival rate compared to when we were using whole blood. They serve as the main factor...

Capt. Jason Glanovsky of the 727th Expeditionary Air Control Squadron loads soccer balls into boxes to be distributed to Iraqi children living near Balad, July 15. U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Christopher Hubenthal. JOINT BASE BALAD — Airmen and Soldiers here recently received donations for Iraqi children who live near this base from a stateside fraternity.  The Pennsylvania State University chapter of the social fraternity Phi Kappa Tau supports programs to increase the quality of life for terminally ill children. Through their program Kicks 4 Kids, along with some inquiring by Capt. Craig Bryan, Expeditionary Aeromedicine Squadron psychologist...

In a July 14 editorial titled “Picking on the Swiss,” the Wall Street Journal criticizes the Obama Administration for attempting to require the Swiss Bank, UBS, to turn over to the IRS the names of some 52,000 US taxpayers who currently maintain secret accounts with the bank. According to the Journal, “This sort of fishing expedition expressly violates the U.S.-Swiss treaty on sharing tax information. The original treaty dates back 30 years, and under the pact the Swiss regularly provide the IRS with information on specific cases. But what the IRS is attempting here is a mass search of U.S....

Sarah Palin’s political action committee raised nearly $733,000 in the first six months of 2009 and has more than $450,000 in cash on hand, according to new filings with the Federal Election Commission. While Republicans are hopeful that Palin will be a big fundraising help for them, her PAC hasn’t exactly been a campaign-finance ATM. Since its formation in late January, it appears to have made just two political contributions — $5,000 to Palin’s 2008 running mate, Sen. John McCain, and $5,000 to Alaska’s Republican senator, Lisa Murkowski. The majority of the money raised by SarahPAC so far has come...

I get phone calls constantly from 800-942-1970. When I answer, no one is there. If I don't answer, they don't leave a message. I am getting called twice a day beginning at 8:15 AM. They even call on Sunday. I have tried to call them back but the number is always busy. I know it's the Reagan site because I found it on google. Lots of people complain about them. Michael, make them stop.

An analysis of the list of Chrysler dealers closed down by the Obama-run auto maker show that many were donors to Republican candidates and Democrat rivals of Barack Obama during the 2008 election cycle.

Cavuto reports that donations are pouring in for the presidential library of former President George W. Bush. In 100 days, he's raised $100 million - an amount that former President Bill Clinton planned to raise in one year.

To feed their insatiable appetite for cash, the two parties’ House campaign committees are turning to their own members to fill their coffers. And as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) has far outpaced its GOP rival in fundraising, so too have Democratic members given far more to the effort than their Republican counterparts. In total, Democrats have transferred $4.87 million from their campaign accounts to the DCCC, with 19 members forking over more than $100,000. By comparison, Republican members of Congress have given the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) just $477,000, with no member topping the six-figure mark. Both...

DES MOINES, Iowa – A mystery is unfolding in the world of college fundraising: During the past few weeks, at least nine universities have received gifts totaling more than $45 million, and the schools had to promise not to try to find out the giver's identity. One school went so far as to check with the IRS and the Department of Homeland Security just to make sure a $1.5 million gift didn't come from illegal sources.

KENOVA, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- If you attend church, chances are you're asked to tithe -- or give 10 percent. But with these tough economic times, many churches are seeing fewer dollars in the collection plate. We took a look at how the economy is affecting some local churches' budgets -- even their outreach services. At Kenova United Methodist Church, members are committed to giving, but nowadays it's a little tough. "We have had a decline in giving, but our congregation gives everything in their power," said Sheila Mosley, a Kenova United Methodist Church member. The church is in the process...

New figures released on government contractors' political donationsFriday, April 3, 2009 BY CLAIRE HEININGER NorthJersey.com STATE HOUSE BUREAU Businesses that were paid $5.1 billion by state, local and county agencies last year donated $11.4 million to political candidates and fundraising committees, according to data released yesterday. The reports filed by 1,475 companies illustrate how money flows between government contractors and politicians running for office. The annual tally is part of reform legislation designed to shine a light on "pay to play," the controversial practice of trading political donations for government contracts. But that landscape could drastically change if the Legislature...

Widows from Arab Jabour smile as they sort through boxes of children’s clothes and toys during a humanitarian aid event hosted by the Iraqi Army in coordination with U.S. troops, March 13. Photo by Sgt. Daniel Nichols, 1st Armored Division Public Affairs. BAGHDAD — Iraqi and U.S. Soldiers delivered toys and cloths to more than 50 widows and their children in the village of Arab Jabour, March 13. Arab Jabour was once an al-Qaida in Iraq stronghold known for suicide bombers and roads heavily mined with improvised explosive devices; its farmlands once the badlands of insurgents.In the past year, violence...

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, March 19, 2009 – Servicemembers here may not be on the front lines, but their life-saving actions still make them heroes. A laboratory technician for the Army’s 440th Blood Support Detachment ensures all equipment is functioning properly as Army Sgt. Mark Poczobut donates blood platelets at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, March 19, 2009. Blood platelets donated at Bagram provide much of Afghanistan with the highly perishable blood component. U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Derek L. Kuhn  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. With the assistance of the Army’s 440th Blood Support Detachment at the Craig Joint Theater...

BARACK Obama and New York senator Charles Schumer, leading the charge to recoup $US165million ($250million) in bonuses paid to employees of AIG, received nearly $US150,000 in campaign donations from the bailed-out US insurance giant. As the White House attempted to contain a furore that threatens to damage the President's standing, New York newspaper Newsday reported that AIG donated $US101,332 to the US President last year, second only to Chris Dodd, chairman of the Senate banking committee, who received $US103,100. Senator Schumer, who proposed legislation yesterday that would claw the bonuses back through a special tax of almost 100per cent on...

(CNN) — As Congress grills AIG's chief executive Wednesday, here's a look at the top ten political recipients of AIG donations for the 2008 election cycle, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. The top ten recipients of AIG donations for the 2008 election cycle: Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut: $103,100 President Barack Obama: $101,332

anyone receive an email like this?Coleman donor? Heard of data leak?� From: Chris Steller (csteller@minnesotaindependent.com) You may not know this sender.Mark as safe|Mark as junk Sent: Wed 3/11/09 11:00 AM To: Chris Steller (csteller@minnesotaindependent.com) I am a reporter for the Minnesota Independent writing to you becauseyour email address appears on a databaseof donors to the Norm Coleman for Senate campaign that apparentlyleaked from the campaign website and has now been made publicanonymously. (See story here: http://is.gd/mSFk) 1. Are you indeed a donor to the Coleman campaign? If so, how much wasyour contribution(s) and when did you donate? That would help...

Bailout firms pay big to D.C.Members of Congress are reluctant to swear off campaign donations from rescue recipients. By Karen E. Crummy The Denver Post Posted: 03/08/2009 12:30:00 AM MST After the biggest federal bailouts in U.S. history, top Washington lawmakers are largely unwilling to say whether they will continue to accept campaign contributions from some of their biggest donors: political action committees and employees of institutions that received the money. Companies that collected bailout money — General Motors, Goldman Sachs, AIG, to name a few — contributed $37 million to federal campaigns last year, with 57 percent of that...

We have been called numerous times over the last week from the RNC and the state Republicans both asking us for money. We refuse to give them any more money until they turn around and 'get right.' The callers sure are persistent, though, and talk right through my 'no'! Anyone else coming up against this?

GOPAC has called night after night wanting money and only money. I've written GOP leaders and elected persons seeking leadership, they want to oppose Obambi, so they say. Nothing happens. Have you seen one shred of support from the GOP for a public initiative? Have you seen one shred of evidence the GOP is actually fighting this menace? NOTHING, nothing is what they are doing and just like Obambi...all they want is money!

One of Washington's time honored rituals is that when a donor turns out to be a sleaze ball, or even an alleged sleaze ball, beneficiaries distance themselves -typically by donating the amount received by their campaign committees to charity. The disgorging has begun when it comes to R. Allen Stanford, the Houston-based banker who - according to the SEC - ran a fraudulent $8 billion investment scheme out of his office on the Caribbean island Antigua. Sen. John McCain of Arizona was the first major recipient to step forward. An aide said this morning that he will donate his receipts...

Wagon Teamster is struck in route By Charles Edwards, February 10, 2009 Dear friends of Daotah; I just received a phone call from an East Coast Wagon Teamster, named Lauren, who let me know that at 11:27AM this morning, Mr. Bob Skelding ( http://www.wagonteamster.com") was struck by tanker truck while traveling through Scooba, Mississippi this afternoon on Highway 45. I contacted the local hospital emergency room to find out how Bob is doing, but am waiting for a call back. Initial reports are grim, as I was informed that all two of his Percheron horses were killed in the...

I had to post this somewhere Got a call from the Republican Party last night wanting money...boy....did he ever call the wrong person. I politely pointed out that until the republicans stop being such cry babies and do what they need to do, I will not contribute a penny. The caller kept on saying but this is when we need your support the most. I said...." and you got my support in the past, but until I see some sort of help or action to unseat the O, I WILL NOT GIVE A PENNY. and that they need to go...

Several Freepers have asked where they could send donations, cards and flowers to Mr. Don Yoon. After asking a reporter covering the story, I received this reply: angelica.martinez@uniontrib.com Dear Steven, Thanks for the feedback. The Korean United Methodist Church of San Diego is accepting donations on Mr. Yoon’s behalf. 3520 Mount Alfani Boulevard, San Diego, CA 92111, Attention: Don Yoon 858-569-4069. Hope this helps. Best regards, Angelica The devastated man lost his wife, his two children and his mother-in-law when the empty F-18 crashed into his house; the pilot, who ejected, landed safely. Mr. Yoon bore the tragedy without blaming...

The results of our campaign so far have been disappointing, but first, let me quote John Smeaton, a board member of International Right to Life and director of Britain's Society for the Protection of Unborn Children. At the recent International Pro-Life Conference in Toronto the very first thing John felt compelled to state was, "A lot of us wouldn't be able to work so effectively if not for the extraordinarily good work of LifeSiteNews, which is the most widely read pro-life news service in the world." Editor John-Henry and I frequently hear similar comments from leaders and activists wherever we...

Ford, Chrysler and GM's contributions after 9/11 An interesting commentary...You might find this of interest: 'CNN Headline News did a short news listing regarding Ford and GM's contributions to the relief and recovery efforts in New York and Washington.

BESMAYA RANGE COMPLEX — A group of Iraqi Soldiers stepped up to help California residents victimized by recent wildfires raging throughout the state. Iraqi Army Col. Abbas Fadhil, Besmaya Range Complex commander, and his team of “Abbas’ Eagles” raised $500 for wildfire relief. “We want to send a message to the American president and the American people,” Abbas said. “We feel that we are a family — one body. When one part of the body suffers, the other parts suffer, too.” This is the fourth donation the Soldiers of Besmaya have sent to the American people recently. In September, they...

Poor Economic Conditions Being Blamed Huntington -- The Huntington City Mission has collected only 14 Turkeys for the organizations annual Thanksgiving Day Dinner. Normally, the organization has already collected 30 to 35 by this time of the year. Mission spokesperson Lynn Clagg says 42 turkeys are needed to feed the 175 to 200 people expected at the dinner Thanksgiving Day. The donations are needed by Friday. You can donate at the Mission which is located in the 600 block of 10th street in Huntington.

BESMAYA RANGE COMPLEX, Iraq, Nov. 20, 2008 – A group of Iraqi soldiers stepped up to help California residents victimized by recent wildfires raging throughout the state. Iraqi army Col. Abbas Fadhil, Besmaya Range Complex commander, and his team of “Abbas’ Eagles” raised $500 for wildfire relief. “We want to send a message to the American president and the American people,” Abbas said. “We feel that we are a family — one body. When one part of the body suffers, the other parts suffer, too.” This is the fourth donation the soldiers of Besmaya have sent to the American people...

A Newsmax investigation of Obama/Biden campaign contributors, undertaken in conjunction with a private investigative firm headed by a former CIA operations officer, has identified 118 donors who appear to lack U.S. citizenship. Some of these “red flag” donors work for foreign governments; others have made public statements declaring that they are citizens of Cameroun, Nigeria, Pakistan, Canada, and other countries. A Newsmax sampling of about 3,400 donors also found hundreds more who showed “yellow flags” such as not having used a Social Security number or a known U.S. address. Most U.S.-born citizens are issued Social Security numbers at birth or...

A Newsmax investigation of Obama/Biden campaign contributors, undertaken in conjunction with a private investigative firm headed by a former CIA operations officer, has identified 118 donors who appear to lack U.S. citizenship. Some of these “red flag” donors work for foreign governments; others have made public statements declaring that they are citizens of Cameroun, Nigeria, Pakistan, Canada, and other countries. A Newsmax sampling of about 3,400 donors also found hundreds more who showed “yellow flags” such as not having used a Social Security number or a known U.S. address. Most U.S.-born citizens are issued Social Security numbers at birth or...

Despite that fact that Atlas broke the campaign contribution story back in July no one paid attention (even the blogs ignored this huge story - huh), but Obama didn't ignore it. He answered almost immediately (with little prompting) saying the contributions from Gaza were returned. He knew the in-the-tank-for-Obama- media would buy it and bury it. He claimed to have refunded the donations but he didn't - go here here - posted at A tlas on August 26. He is laughing at us, at this country, at our laws, at the rule of law. Does he think he is above...

I mentioned earlier that "Della Ware" of "12345 No Way" had managed to make a campaign donation to the fraud-friendly Obama website but not to the McCain site, and that the Obama money was whisked out of her account and into Barack's swollen coffers moments later. "Della" - real name Erika - emailed The New York Times and managed to persuade them to cover the story, if only on their blog. We'll see if the news is fit to print tomorrow morning. The headline is unusually robust - "Obama's Online Site Accepts More Fakes" - although the story continues:

Going through the latest FEC filings on Obamabucks, is nothing short of staggering. The numbers, the blatant flagrant exploitation of lapsed (almost none) FEC enforcement and the thuggery that accompanies exposing anything tied to voter fraud or Obama's money Obama's money has resulted in complete lawlessness. Expenses reported thru 8/31/08 $ 383,327,192.18 Expenses reported thru 9/30/08 (filtered to exclude 9/30/08) $386,027,050.31 New expenses for 8/31/08 and earlier not reported as required $2,699,858.13 Can they not report 2.7 million in expenses as required and the just drop in 2.7 million as a frickin footnote? Obama is handing over enormous amounts of...

What do Bart Simpson, Family Guy, Daffy Duck, King Kong, O.J. Simpson and Raela Odinga have in common? All are celebrities; and with the exception of Odinga and O.J. Simpson, they also are fictional characters. And yet, all of them gave money earlier this month to the campaign of Barack Obama, without any apparent effort by the campaign to screen them out as suspect donors. The Obama fundraising machine may owe its sensational success in part to a relaxation of standard online merchant security practices, which has allowed illegal donations from foreign donors and from unknown individuals using anonymous “gift”...

About seventy-five percent of game industry presidential campaign donations went to democrats, based on a sampling of developers and publisher donations over the past two years obtained from the Federal Election Commission. Kotaku looked at presidential campaign donations for nine companies from January of 2007 through the end of July, 2008. The companies included were Activision, Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Nintendo, Sony Computer Entertainment of America, Take-Two, THQ, Ubisoft and Valve. The database showed that the nine companies donated a total of about $97,800 to ten candidates, about $61,000 of which went to democratic candidates, while about $36,700 went to republican...

A challenge out to Texas FReepers: Let’s beat those California FReepers! A little friendly competition so-to-speak. Texas does everything bigger and better. California has 83 monthly donors for a total of $1,303.56. Texas has 67 monthly donors for a total of $1,157.00 Come on TX FReepers, you can do it! We only need 15 TX FReepers to commit to $10.00 a month to take the lead. I know you’re out there. We have the second highest membership rate. Show FR some more love.

Last December, someone using the name “Test Person,” from “Some Place, UT,” made a series of contributions, the largest being $764, to Senator Barack Obama’s presidential campaign totaling $2,410.07. Someone identifying himself as “Jockim Alberton,” from 1581 Leroy Avenue in Wilmington, Del., began giving to Mr. Obama last November, contributing $10 and $25 at a time for a total of $445 through the end of February. The only problem? There is no Leroy Avenue in Wilmington. And Jockim Alberton, who listed his employer and occupation as “Fdsa Fdsa,” does not show up in a search of public records.

Campaign Finance: Sources of more than $190 million in Obama election contributions are unidentified. Will a federal investigation find foreigners illegally rigging the most important presidential election in history?

KABUL, Afghanistan, Oct. 7, 2008 – Donations of school supplies and children’s clothing from military families and friends at home are helping deployed New York Army National Guard soldiers in their mission to mentor and train the Afghan national security forces and support the Afghan people. Army Master Sgt. Michael Molgaard helps to unload boxes of donated clothing and school supplies with an Afghan policeman at the Afshar School. U.S. Army photo by Capt. Robert Romano, Combined Joint Task Force Phoenix  (Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available. Members of the Afghan National Police delivered hundreds of pounds of schools...