Americans Elect ... a hedge-fund manager?

Salon's Justin Elliott says that Americans Elect, that "centrist," web-based start-up third party you may have heard it, is deeply funded by Wall Streeters. Think 0.001 percenters. And isn't nearly as "transparent" as it first claimed.

First, it changed the exact nature of its nonprofit status, so it can hide donor information.

Second,there's this:

Americans Elect officials often tout their “revolutionary” online nominating convention, which will be open to any registered voter. But there’s a big catch. Any ticket picked by participants will have to be approved by a Candidate Certification Committee, according to the group’s bylaws.

Among other things this committee will need to certify a “balanced ticket obligation”  – that the ticket consists of persons who are “responsive to the vast majority of citizens while remaining independent of special interests and the partisan interests of either major political party,” according to the current draft of Americans Elect rules. Making these sorts of assessments is, of course, purely subjective.

And who appoints the members of the Candidate Certification Committee? The board members of Americans Elect.

"Niiiicceeeee," eh? There's a blog, Irregular Times, with a tag and coverage devoted just to these less kind, less gentle neolib, linked off Elliott's article.