The fiction of non-coordination between campaigns and super PACs just gets richer. A story this weekend from The New York Times maps out the tangled web of ties found in one office suite -- yes, just one -- to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign.
According to the story, Suite 555 at 66 Canal Center Plaza in Alexandria, Virginia, is home to TargetPoint Consulting, a firm that has been hired by Mitt Romney’s campaign for direct mail research. And not surprisingly, the same firm has also worked for Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting, yet supposedly not coordinating with, the Romney campaign.
That’s not all. Suite 555 also houses WWP Strategies, a company co-founded by the spouse of TargetPoint’s top director. Down the hall is another firm founded by a top 2008 Romney campaign operative who now helps manage both Restore Our Future and American Crossroads, the super PAC most notably affiliated with G.O.P. mastermind Karl Rove.
All this goes to underscore the lie of “non-coordination” between super PACs and candidate campaigns. The idea that tissue-paper thin barriers (or in this case, a bit of drywall) will stymie efforts between campaigns and “independent” groups to walk in lockstep is a farce. The flimsy protections in place go mocked by campaigns and super PACs, totally ignored by the do-nothing Federal Election Commission, and entirely distrusted by voters who have no idea who to believe in this election.
Check out the full story here. For the visual, make sure to see the infographic posted with the story.