Wink, wink

And speaking of disclosure ...

Rep. Joe Heck, the Republican from Nevada's 3rd Congressional District, has a bull's-eye on his back.

Rep. Heck defeated incumbent Democrat Dina Titus in November by fewer than 2,000 votes. Because of that tight margin, he's one of 10 House GOP freshmen that Democrats have targeted for 2012.

Local radio listeners may have heard recent ads accusing Rep. Heck of voting for budgets that will destroy health care for the elderly and favor the rich over American families. It's stock stuff, straight out of the most elementary Democratic Party playbook.

But even close listeners might not be able to determine who's responsible for the attack ads.

For all the talk on the left about the importance of disclosure when it comes to political speech, the operatives behind these spots don't seem too eager to identify themselves. Instead, we're told in the ad patter that the anti-Heck campaign is the work of some outfit called "House Majority PAC," whatever that is.

The group is "one of four new Democratic independent-expenditure groups formed in the past month," CNN reports.

Fine. The more robust debate, the better. But next time you hear whining about how Republicans use third-party groups to get around campaign finance regulations, take it with a wink and a nod.