"Clinton’s ironic call for campaign finance reform"

My latest op-ed is up in the Sacramento Bee. 

"California Ballot Measure to Revolutionize Disclosure of Political Money"

Honored to have been asked to weigh in on this. 

"The public has the right to know who is spending money to try to sway their ballot box decisions. If money is speech, voters must know who is speaking to them," Jessica Levinson Clinical Professor of Law at Loyola Law School.

"GOP debate is a tug-of-war for the Reagan mantle"

Always such fun to speak with Carla Marinucci of the San Francisco Chronicle (soon to be moving to Politico).

Jessica Levinson, who teaches political ethics at Loyola Law School of Los Angeles, says winning the rights to the Reagan legacy isn’t even much of a contest.

“Who is the the next Ronald Reagan?’’ she asks. “None of them. It’s like, ‘Will the real Slim Shady please stand up,?’” evoking a famed question from rapper Eminem’s landmark work.

‘Movie star quality’

That’s because the vaunted Reagan shadow looms large over the culture, and the country — both among Republicans who hold him in awe, or Democrats who often hold him in contempt, she said.

“There was a movie star quality about him that appealed to the nation then,” in a way that will likely never be replicated in the age of social media, she said.

To his party, Reagan is still revered for his “ability to inspire, to make us feel better about the country we live in,” Levinson said. “And whether you think he was a positive or a negative, he did represent a sea change in terms of our expectations of what government should do for us — a paradigm shift.”

"Moderate Assembly Democrats emerge as powerful pro-business force"

Great to speak with Jessica Calefati for this piece. 

"Sophisticated, well-funded special interests are playing a long game," said Jessica Levinson, a campaign finance expert and Loyola Law School professor. "It makes a lot of sense to invest early in people who are attuned to your needs and are in position to vote your way when the time comes."

"Investigation: Candidates enrich themselves with campaign cash, gifts, travel"

Terrific to speak with Rachel Baye for this one. 

Even when legal, some expenses still might not be appropriate, said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School who specializes in campaign finance.

“The line should be drawn a bit more stringently to really say these are funds that were given to allow you, legislator, to get your message out to obtain voters, and these aren't funds that were given out so that you could obtain personal perks,” said Levinson, also president of Los Angeles' Ethics Commission. “A lot of what we're seeing here looks more like personal perks than bona fide governmental or legislative purposes.”

"Carson mayor under investigation for not filing disclosure reports with the state"

Great to speak with Nathan Fenno, Paul Pringle, and Richard Winton on the Los Angeles Times for this one. 

Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor and president of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, said it was unusual for an elected official to not file multiple statements, as opposed to submitting one past the deadline. "A penalty may very well be appropriate," Levinson said.

"San Jose commission will investigate nearly the entire City Council"

Great to talk to Ramona Giwargis of the San Jose Mercury News for this one. 

But a political ethics expert said the commission made a fair decision. "A comprehensive investigation seems like a rational response to the allegations," said Jessica Levinson, a professor at Loyola Law School and president of the Los Angeles Ethics Commission.