Advisory Opinions

A show for Republican campaign professionals by campaign professionals. We discuss the nuts & bolts of how to run a political campaign, best practices, tips, and breaking news about campaign management, fundraising, FEC compliance, and fundraising. Whether you are working on your first campaign or a seasoned veteran, Advisory Opinions will help you stay on top of what you need to know in the chaotic world of elections and politics. The views and opinions expressed on this podcast are those of the hosts and do no necessarily reflect the policies or positions of CMDI, or any other agency, organization, employer, or company.

#18: What to Do After the Election 11/07/2018

#18: What to Do After the Election Election Day is over. What do you do now? A good campaign has a solid wrap-up plan regardless of winning or losing. In this episode of Advisory Opinions, Jack Blakely and Adrienne Royer discuss best practices of winding down your campaign in addition to things that campaigns must do, such as updating donation page disclaimers and filing FEC reports. Make sure to check out the show notes at CMDI.com for details and links of all the resources discussed in this episode. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/7477337

#17: Election Day Survival Guide 10/29/2018

#17: Election Day Survival Guide You've almost made it to Election Day. Find out how to maximize your day with tips and suggestions that your hosts, Jack and Adrienne, gathered from campaign veterans. Hear about lessons learned, strategies for planning your day, and how to best prepare for the unexpected from early in the morning until late that night. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/7353956

#16: New Campaign Digital Defense Tools 10/01/2018

#16: New Campaign Digital Defense Tools Your campaign security may be bad, but the FEC approved some new tools to help. Jack and Adrienne discuss a recent decision from the FEC where they exempted Microsoft's AccountGuard from being considered an in-kind donation. Microsoft rolled out a suite of security features for free to political campaigns and entities who are Office 365 customers. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/7095596

#15: Updates! 09/21/2018

#15: Updates! The world of campaign finance issues has been active in the past couple of weeks, and there are updates to two legal cases mentioned in the episode #14. Jack and Adrienne discuss recent updates to CREW vs. FEC and Americans for Prosperity vs. Becerra. They also provide an update on the Senate e-file bill, which President Trump signed this afternoon. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/7075885

#14: Changes for Political 501(c)4s 09/10/2018

#14: Changes for Political 501(c)4s This summer, there have been two big changes for 501(c)4 organizations, one from the IRS and one from the US Courts. First, the IRS announced they would no longer collect the Schedule B portion of 990 forms for 501(c)4 organizations. This eliminates the requirement to submit the names and addresses of major donors. Secondly, a DC Circuit Court judge ruled that 501(c)4 organizations must disclose the names of donors who contribute more than $200 towards an independent expenditure. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6989379

#13: Risky Raffles 08/27/2018

#13: Risky Raffles Raffles and bingo games are popular fundraisers for churches and nonprofits, but do they work on political campaigns? In this episode of Advisory Opinions, the two hosts discuss the problems and pitfalls that campaigns can get into with these fundraising events, highlight examples in Florida, Kansas and Michigan, and examine the different state laws surrounding games of chance in politics. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6974810

#12: Keep your receipts! 08/06/2018

#12: Keep your receipts! Recently, Rep. Kevin Kramer (R-SD) was accused of lying on FEC forms tracking travel reimbursement. How did show his innocence? /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6895293

#11: Foreign Money In U.S. Politics 07/27/2018

#11: Foreign Money In U.S. Politics The FEC recently considered two proposals about changing the rules on foreign money in U.S. elections. Is this partisan politics, media hoopla, or a real problem that the FEC needs to address? What laws are already on the books and do they need to be updated? What is the hang up at the FEC? What were in the proposals? What can non-citizens do and not do with US elections? Jack and Adrienne discuss if foreign money is a major threat to our elections or much ado about nothing. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6857815

#10: Your Campaign Security Is Bad 07/03/2018

#10: Your Campaign Security Is Bad A recent survey from the Shorenstein Center at Harvard Kennedy School found that only 39% of campaign staffers are concerned about hacks. Jack and Adrienne discuss simple steps your campaign can take that aren't expensive or time consuming to make your data and systems more secure. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6771468

Does Janus Change Everything? 06/26/2018

Does Janus Change Everything? This week, the Supreme Court will hand down their decision in the anticipated Janus vs. AFSCME case. In this episode, Jack and Adrienne discuss how elections are likely to change if the Supreme Court rules against public sector unions. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6746293

#8: Data Clean 06/18/2018

#8: Data Clean Dirty data can end up costing your campaign or PAC more since expensive mail packages are sent to wrong addresses and valuable staff time is wasted. Learn about cost-saving practices that also keep your data in shape as Jack and Adrienne discuss data hygiene and maintenance with Greg Andreycak, the director of account services at CMDI.
/episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6716880

#7: Facebook's New Advertising Rules 06/04/2018

#7: Facebook's New Advertising Rules Facebook has made the news for their new political ad policy. Jack and Adrienne discuss which ads Facebook considers to be political, the list of topics classified as issue ads, how to get verified, and how the new rules affect nonprofits, small businesses, and former office holders. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6667940

#6: Rosie's FEC Fun 05/14/2018

#6: Rosie's FEC Fun Jack and Adrienne discuss the report that Rosie O'Donnell made campaign contributions that exceeded FEC limits under different names and addresses. Is this the same situation as conservative writer, Dinesh D'Souza? Will Rosie go to jail? /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6591338

#1: What is Advisory Opinions? 05/11/2018

#1: What is Advisory Opinions? What is Advisory Opinions? Who are the hosts, and why are we doing this podcast? /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6583654

#2: Money & Polls 2018 Edition 05/11/2018

#2: Money & Polls 2018 Edition The GOP is breaking fundraising records…but not doing great in the polls. How does this happen and what does it mean for the mid-terms? A discussion on polling, fundraising and how to tell who is winning the horse race. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6583549

#5: Recurring donations and why to include them in your strategy 05/04/2018

#5: Recurring donations and why to include them in your strategy What are recurring donations and why do you need them? Jack Simms, VP of Product Development for CMDI, joins Jack and Adrienne to discuss implementation and strategies to create a recurring donation program on your political campaign. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6557571

#3: Cryptocurrency and campaigns. 05/04/2018

#3: Cryptocurrency and campaigns. How to accept Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency as a FEC-compliant donation for your political campaign. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6557534

#4: Most common FEC mistakes and how to stop making them. 05/04/2018

#4: Most common FEC mistakes and how to stop making them. Our Director of Compliance Jeff Wernsing shares the most common mistakes made when making FEC filings. /episode/index/show/advisoryopinions/id/6557447

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