 mags2Agent Provocateur
join:2001-07-19
SoCal | reply to SRFireside
Re: Gimme Fritz for a Hunderd Grand, Alex! said by SRFireside:
Hopefully the new Campaign Reform Bill will help make some changes once it's rolled. Not a perfect solution, but better than what we have now.
Just from what I understand the McCain-Feingold bill will curtail some dramatic abuses in the system: the use of unlimited "soft money" that is not supposed to support federal candidates but which has been used to do so, and tighter control of campaign advertising that tries to masquerade as independent "issue adverting." The other major provision of the bill, even as it reduces soft money and discouraged sham "issue advertising," McCain-Feingold doubles the size of "hard money" contributions, those that directly fund a candidate.
Here's the irony in that: Recall that record-breaking, headline-making $100 million that George W. Bush raised in the 2000 primary season? It was all hard money, raised mostly in $1,000 denominations, the maximum then allowed by law. Even as McCain-Feingold reduces the influence of soft money, it doubles the amount of hard money that donors can give. Soft money makes up one-third of the money in federal politics, while hard money accounts for most of the other two-thirds. So, if we cut soft money but all hard-money donors double their gifts, we'll end up with four thirds, or a third more money in federal politics than before. This is progress?
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If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy? -T.Jefferson |
| That hard money limit that was raised applies only to individual donations. I don't think corporations in of themselves can benefit from that. Only the fat cats IN the company. There was much debate regarding individual contribution limits and many conservatives call it unconstitutional ("If I want to give my own money away to a politician I support I should give whatever I want" being the credo). I suppose they had to make that compromise. I haven't seen anywhere on the bill that states corporations or organizations have higher limits on hard money contributions. I don't see where big business and their massive lobbying are getting a better deal here.
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When do I get my freakin' third star?!?!? |
