Untitled Document

Making an Impact

The suit, filed against Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott... accuses Abbott of targeting minority voters in his prosecution of the provisions in a "deliberate campaign to suppress the minority vote."...

The group behind the lawsuit is the Lone Star Project
(Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9/22/2006)

The Democrats at the Lone Star Project say U.S. Attorney General Al Gonzales and U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton in San Antonio blew their chance to bring justice to the Texas Youth Commission sexual abuse case.
(Houston Chronicle Blog, 3/15/2007)

David Dewhurst has said most Texans don't have much sympathy "for someone who that can't fill out a two page [health insurance] application every six months".

The Democrat-supported Lone Star Project in Washington reported this week that Dewhurst failed to file necessary forms at least six times in recent years.
(San Antonio Expres News,, 4/12/2007)

The Justice staff memo was obtained by the Lone Star Project ...The story broke the same day the U.S. Supreme Court was considering legal challenges to the plan brought by Democrats and minority groups.
(Houston Chronicle, 12/3/2005)

The Texas chapter of the NAACP, along with the Lone Star Project, have analyzed the amicus brief filed by the Justice Department and have concluded, justifiably, that the Voting Rights section of the Justice Department is now controlled by partisan political appointees.
(Roll Call - Donna Brazile, 2/28/2006)

Using the Lone Star Project as an information clearinghouse for all things DeLay. The organization "particularly became relevant as the unethical activities of Tom DeLay came more to light."
(The Fix – Washington Post,3/6/2006)

What's more, the relevant 73-page memo "has been kept under tight wraps" since then. That memo is now publicly available, here in PDF at the Lone Star Project.
(Hotline, 12/2/2005)

GOP Donors Beware – Bill Zedler Event Violates Federal Law
Formal complaints against event sponsors possible

Republican State Representative Bill Zedler (HD96 – Arlington) is kicking off his re-election campaign with a fundraising event that clearly violates federal campaign finance laws. Zedler is using Republican Members of Congress, Joe Barton and Kay Granger, to promote his 2008 campaign and to help solicit donations far in excess of the amount allowed by federal law.

Zedler Violating McCain/Feingold Election law

See the Invite

Ironically, Bill Zedler has put his supporters and donors at risk by violating explicit provisions of the McCain/Feingold campaign finance reform law, that was written and championed by the current Republican Presidential nominee John McCain. Under McCain’s law, Members of Congress, like Kay Granger and Joe Barton, cannot be used to help solicit donations in excess of $2,300.

The FEC is clear about the restrictions and describes the limits online here or here.

As the PDF shows, Zedler includes Joe Barton and Kay Granger, both Members of Congress, on his event host committee asking for campaign contributions. The amounts solicited for the event are as high as $5,000, far in excess of the $2,300 allowed by law.

What’s in Zed’s Head?
"I had zero knowledge..."
The last time Bill Zedler was mired in a campaign finance controversy; he was in front of a Travis County Grand Jury investigation for potentially accepting an illegal contribution from Tom DeLay’s TRMPAC to cover legal fees. When asked about it, Zedler explained, "I have to have knowledge that it was inappropriate for me to have a problem...I had zero knowledge, so I know I have zero problems."
(Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3/3/04)

Who is at risk?
Bill Zedler’s illegal fundraiser makes a formal Federal Election Commission complaint against Joe Barton and Kay Granger possible. Zedler, along with other event hosts and participants, could be named as Respondents in an FEC complaint.

Can Zedler fix it? – Probably not
Bill Zedler has already sent hundreds and perhaps thousands of illegal donor solicitations across Texas. The provisions of law he violated are not obscure. In fact, other local State House Members like Republican Rep. Linda Harper Brown have included Members of Congress in their events, but solicited only the amounts allowed by law.

To mitigate the potential damage and show good faith in the face of a formal complaint, Zedler should cancel the event and return any contributions received.

The Lone Star Project is an activity of the Lone Star Fund.

Contributions to this committee are not tax deductible. Federal law requires political committees to use our best efforts to report the name, mailing address, occupation and name of employer for each individual whose contributions exceed $200 in a calendar year. The Lone Star Fund accepts federal contributions from individuals, partnerships, and other federal political committee of up to $5,000 per calendar year.

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