For two months Accountable America has run our project aimed at deterring funding of conservative and business-oriented groups that violate election and tax laws in order to block progressive change and attack progressive political candidates.  And, even while we head into the final stretch of the election when spending by these groups will most likely hit their peak, it is clear our work has been successful.

To date the media spending by outside groups is about $106 million less in 2008 than comparative spending in the 2004 election, according to reports by the Campaign Media Analysis Group.

A headline in The Politico notes: "Where are the third-party groups?" The author, Jonathan Martin, continues: "I wrote in June that there was an absence of third-party activity on the right but that most GOP operatives thought an anti-Obama effort would eventually, somehow, materialize. Today is October 6th."

Chris Cilizza in The Fix for The Washington Post writes, "a series of attempts to organize efforts on the right and left have failed to get off the ground due to a lack of interest on the part of major donors to fund the efforts." 

CNN's Mark Preston writes, "At this time four years ago, independent groups had spent $120 million on commercials for the presidential race compared to the $13.2 million invested so far in this race, according to an analysis of political television ad spending conducted for CNN by TNSMI-Campaign Media Analysis Group."

He continues, "So far this election cycle, spending by anti-Obama and anti-McCain groups is dead even with each totaling $6.6 million so far this election cycle. In the last two weeks, Republican issue groups have spent $2.3 million, while Democratic issue groups have accounted for about $1 million."

Even if independent groups wage an all-out-bench-clearing-knock-down-drag-out fight in the next four weeks, it will be too late for new groups to arise and make a significant impact. These projects take time, money and legal fortitude. And, even after 2007's WRTL Supreme Court case, which made it easier to run candidate-referential broadcast advertising before elections, running a 527 is actually still harder than people might imagine. (Trust me, I've done it.) 

It is a little known fact that while 527s can seek to influence the issue debate in an election year, they risk everything if they focus on outright personal attacks on candidates for federal office. That means Bill Ayers, Tony Rezko and whatever other phony non-policy matter conservatives want to air is almost entirely off-limits to a 527.

Interestingly, at the same time their efforts to affect the race for the White House have been small, conservative and business groups fueled by oil companies and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are spending like crazy in Senate races.  And casino mogul Sheldon Adelson's Freedom's Watch is still spending a little in House races. (Albeit far short of the $250 million they threatened in January.)

As for Accountable America, our mission has always been broader than our work aimed at exposing and explaining the financing, leadership and objectives of conservative and business groups. That work serves our greater goal of achieving sound, progressive public policies on the big issues like the economy, energy and national security.

We will begin new projects over the next month focused on these and other issues. After the election, the transition will be the critical point to push for policy commitments by the next president and Congress. We will be actively involved in that effort, and we expect the same groups on the right that now are talking about candidates to turn their attention to blocking real progress on all fronts.  Election Day isn't the end--it's the beginning.

Until then, we expect conservative and business groups to spend most of their budgets in these last four weeks, but those efforts will be well shy of what they and their allies spent in 2004. That is a win for Accountable America and for all of us.

We will remain vigilant. And the $100,000 reward offer is still on the table.