How Much Have You Spent Politically? FundRace2010 Knows
Stephen Colbert made a splash in Washington last week when he became the latest celebrity to push a cause on Capitol Hill. But is he putting his money where his mouth is this election cycle?
There's now an easy way to find out.
Huffington Post has launched a new feature, an interactive map tracking political contributions by donor, party, campaign and geographic location.
FundRace2010 was founded by Aristotle International's John Aristotle Phillips, who joined "Washington Unplugged" Thursday for a demo.
"The more transparency there is in politics, especially with who's supporting which candidates, generally the better it is," Phillips told CBS News' Bob Orr.
Candidates and political action committees are required to report every contribution they receive, as well as the employer and occupation of the contributor, to the Federal Elections Commission. FundRace2010's data goes back ten years and includes both federal and state campaigns.
"It's all public record information, pooled together by Huffington Post in a way that makes it transparent where the money is coming from and where it is going," Phillips said.
FundRace2010 has paired up with Facebook so users can easily see who their friends politically and financially support. "Many voters now are not just exercising their right to vote, but also to donate themselves," Phillips said.
FundRace2010 also analyzes data by America's biggest cities, which tend to lean more Democratic (See Chicago, Los Angeles and New York). But not all of them lean blue - Dallas and Salt Lake City both have more Republican donors in this midterm cycle.
The country's biggest campaign donors are broken down on the site in the categories of entertainment, business, technology and media.
The site shows that actor Michael Douglas, who played a politician in "The American President," is just as politically active, having contributed a total of $300,000 to 75 different campaigns in 2008. He's outdone by Hollywood director Stephen Spielberg, who gave $450,000 to about 90 candidates and committees also in 2008.
MTV "Jersey Shore" star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi made headlines when she commented on an Obama administration tax on tanning, even garnering reaction on Twitter from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.). But has the young reality star donated any of her newfound fortune to politics? FundRace2010 reports not yet.
While Hollywood donations lean Democratic, there's no clear party trend among corporations. FundRace2010 identifies Apple, Inc. and AT&T as two corporations with high Democratic donors amongst their employees, but Wells Fargo and Chevron have predomiantly Republican donors among their employees.
Other fun finds on FundRace2010: According to the FEC, 66 people making political donations identify their occupation as "clown," 18 as "rodeo clown" and at least two as "class clown."
But for the candidates raking in these big political bucks, it's no laughing matter.
CBSNews.com's Brian Montopoli and Rep. Aaron Schock (R-Ill.) were also guests on "Washington Unplugged" Thursday. Watch full show above.
