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Jul 28, 2006 -- Legal Center Weekly Report: July 28, 2006 Legal Center Releases Presidential Public Financing: Repairing the System
In conjunction with the introduction of the presidential public financing legislation in the House and Senate, the Campaign Legal Center and Democracy 21 released a report, Presidential Public Financing: Repairing the System. The report, made public on July 27, 2006, is based on the December 2005 conference that brought together a bipartisan group of experts to discuss the system and how to bring it into line with the realities of Presidential elections in the 21st Century.
Presidential Public Financing: Repairing the System highlights the importance of the system, defines some of the current problems the system faces, and offers guidance on how to begin addressing these problems. The report also includes complete transcripts of the conference panelists including FEC Commissioners, scholars, public interest and business leaders, and policy and public opinion experts.
To download the full report, click here.
The Campaign Legal Center, joined by Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG sent a letter to all members of Congress this week, urging them to support legislation introduced by Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Representatives Marty Meehan (D-MA) and Christopher Shays (R-CT) to fix the presidential public financing system.
The letter states, "In the 2004 presidential election, the public financing system failed to function properly, in large part because there had been no adjustments made in the system since its enactment in 1974." It continues, "[w]e are now facing a presidential election in 2008, where the two major party nominees may well opt out of both the primary and general election public funding system and end up spending a combined $1 billion in private funds on their races."
To view the full press release and letter, click here.
Legal Center Urges Ban on Leadership PACs
On July 25, 2006, reform groups sent a letter to House Members urging them to support H.R. 5389 - the Leadership PAC Prohibition Act of 2006 introduced by Rep. Joel Hefley (R-CO). The groups included the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen, and U.S. PIRG. Meredith McGehee, Policy Director of the Campaign Legal Center, stated, "Leadership PACs are little more than political slush funds that allow Members of Congress to essentially ignore a variety of campaign finance laws." Hefley's bill is designed to curb the rampant abuses of the system executed through these PACs and the Members who use them as their personal expense accounts. CLC's position is that doing away with Leadership PACs is an essential step toward cleaning up Washington and restoring the public's confidence in the United States Congress.
To view the press release, click here.
To view the letter sent to the House, click here.
This week, Congressional Leadership announced intentions to up the ante in the "pay-to-play" game on Capitol Hill by allowing unlimited transfers from Leadership PACs to party committees. Meredith McGehee stated, "[t]his measure would open the floodgates on campaign contribution limits. For example, it would allow an individual who is limited to $4,200 in contributions during a Senate election cycle to funnel an additional $30,000 ($5,000 per year to the leadership PAC over six-years) to a Senator in a tough race." She continues, "And if this measure is similar to the previous attempt made last fall, it would also serve to benefit incumbents exclusively," because its use would be limited exclusively to elected federal officials.
Today, a letter was sent to members of the House and Senate by the same reform groups who have also urged a ban on leadership PACs. The letter calls the attempt to attach the provision to the already passed lobbying legislation an "undemocratic, backdoor, abusive process… that would eviscerate the limits on contributions to Members and open a massive loophole in the campaign finance laws."
To view the full statement by Policy Director Meredith McGehee, click here.
To view the group letter sent to the House and Senate, click here.
Legal Center Calls for Congressional Redistricting Reform Hearings
On July 25, 2006, the Campaign Legal Center sent a letter to Chairman Steve Chabot (R-OH) urging him to hold hearings on Congressional redistricting before the end of the 109th Congress. The letter to Chabot, who chairs the House Judiciary's Subcommittee on the Constitution, stresses the need to hold hearings so that a serious discussion of the controversial redistricting issue can begin.
The Legal Center cites the importance of these hearings now, in the wake of the Supreme Court's recent decision in the Texas redistricting case (League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry) and the reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act. The letter states that two bills introduced in the House - The Fairness and Independence in Redistricting Act of 2005 (H.R. 2642) introduced by John Tanner (D-TN), and the Redistricting Reform Act of 2005 (H.R. 4094) introduced by Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) - can be used as starting points in consideration of this important issue.
To view the complete letter, click here.
To read the full text of the Fairness and Independence in Redistricting Act of 2005 (H.R. 2642), click here.
To read the full text of the Redistricting Reform Act of 2005 (H.R. 4094) click here.
Legal Center Blog Highlights
Each week, the Campaign Legal Center staff posts blog entries on its site, www.clcblog.org. To read this week's entry "The Demise of Illegal Gratuities Regulation" and "Real Lobbying Reform v. Toothless 'Lobbying Reform'," or to sign up for blog updates, click here.
To read a variety of this week's editorials and articles on campaign finance, please click here.
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