Hotline On Call

Sure, Stephen Colbert can draw a crowd, and he did today, when the Federal Election Commission gave his parent company Viacom the right to create ads for Colbert's political action committee.

But the real story, as Hotline staff writer Sarah Mimms points out, came as the FEC rejected an appeal to allow federal candidates to raise money for independent expenditure-only political action committees -- the so-called "super PACs."

Writes Sarah:

In a unanimous vote, the Federal Election Commission ruled Thursday that members of Congress and federal candidates cannot raise funds for independent expenditure committees beyond the federal limit of $5,000.

The decision today is a setback for so-called "Super PACs" on both sides of the aisle that had hoped to harness the star power of popular politicians for financial gain.

Last month, Democratic groups Majority PAC and House Majority PAC filed a joint request for an advisory opinion from the FEC, asking the Commission to determine whether federal officeholders and candidates, as well as national party officers could solicit unlimited donations for Super PACs, citing a proposal by a Republican Super PAC -- called, unsurprisingly, the Republican Super PAC -- to do so.