Posted by Tina
Both John McCain and Barack Obama say they want to rein in the power of the so-called ”527s,” the independent political committees that skirt the campaign finance laws with unlimited financing and unregulated campaign attacks. But two of McCain’s own campaign chairmen are serving on the board of an independent organization behind a new attack ad against Obama, ”an apparent violation of the Arizona Republican’s new conflict of interest policy,” Baltimore Sun
McCain may yet come to regret this terrible blunder.
The Heritage Foundation offers some insight into the problem:
The First Amendment denies government the power to determine that spending to promote one’s political views is wasteful, excessive, or unwise. In the free society ordained by our Constitution it is not the government, but the people-individually as citizens and candidates and collectively as associations and political committees-who must retain control over the quantity and range of debate on public issues in a political campaign.8 ** Thus, the effort by the “reformers” to take this power from the people is both wrong and doomed to fail because it is unconstitutional. Chief among the wrongheaded and unconstitutional sets of proposals is the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act of 1999, sponsored in the Senate (S. 26) by Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Russell Feingold (D-WI) and in the House (H.R. 417) by Representatives Christopher Shays (R-CT) and Martin Meehan (D-MA). Although announced with the promise of reducing the “corrupting influence of big money,”9 these bills would do nothing of the sort. Instead, they shake a fist at the First Amendment and, if passed, would be destined for a court-ordered funeral. ** To adopt true reform, Congress would need first to recognize that today’s perceived abuses simply are the predictable result of past “reforms” in which the suppression of political speech was the principal focus of the “reformers.” In contrast, adopting measurers that would enhance political speech and improve transparency and public accountability would deal more effectively with the problems, and they unquestionably would be upheld by the courts. Such measures include raising or eliminating contribution limits that have been eroded by inflation and removing barriers that prevent political parties from exercising a moderating influence in political campaigns.
This 527 business will be utilized by both campaigns…no doubt about it. In the mean time find me wishing and hoping and thinkin’ and praying, planning and dreaming and …still waiting for the funeral.