Much to their chagrin, political party ops and fundraisers go to “school” to try and figure out how to navigate (around) McCain-Feingold. It’s kinda sad how many reps are quoted as saying variations of “Wow, if I had known this bill was really going to stop us from getting all that money, I never would have voted for it.”
Category: McCain-Feingold
Legal Wrangling Cash Cows.
The legal battle over McCain-Feingold began today, with some strange bedfellows fighting for and against the soft money ban. I bet you can guess which side Ken Starr is on, though.
Charting the Future.
The battle lines are drawn in the race to succeed Gephardt: Martin Frost v. Nancy Pelosi. Frost (House/Campaign/Funding) is a Texas moderate, Pelosi (House/Campaign/Funding) a California liberal. Neither overwhelm me with their progressive credentials (education, campaign finance reform, voting rights, etc.), but from what I read of the two here I guess I prefer Pelosi, particularly given the fact that, while Pelosi seems to support McCain-Feingold, Frost apparently tried to stop Shays-Meehan, the House arm of the bill. Pelosi might be easier for the GOP to pigeonhole as a “paleoliberal,” but I need more evidence that Frost wants the Dems to be anything more than GOP lite. Advantage Pelosi, for now.
The Last Binge Continues.
Six weeks before McCain-Feingold is enacted, Republicans and Democrats are begging for money like it’s going out of style.
One Last Binge?
Despite the recent economic travails and the passage of McCain-Feingold (which takes effect after this election cycle), both the GOP and the Dems are awash in campaign cash for 2002. I’m curious to see what kind of dent McCain-Feingold puts in this sort of behavior, if only for a while.
Hillary in 2008?
With the Dem slate in 2004 already eliciting yawns from all but the Gore faithful, the Hillary in 2008 movement is growing louder. Well, that would explain why she was so eager to find a way around McCain-Feingold.
Taxpayers for Jeb.
TNR explores how Dubya’s using your money to re-elect his brother (and keep the Florida machine greased for 2004.) Amazing how little we’ve heard about this considering all the treatment the FALN clemency story got during Hillary’s run. (Speaking of Hillary, my respect for her diminished further — it was already pretty low after the “somebody should kill Nader” bit on election night — when she got in a shouting match with Russ Feingold over campaign finance reform last week. Apparently, she’s already trying to find ways around the ban.)
What it Might Mean.
Congressional Quarterly analyzes the possible impact of McCain-Feingold.
Returning Fire.
Frustrated by the FEC gutting of campaign finance reform last week, John McCain promises to hold up FEC appointments in the Senate until a more reform-sympathetic panel is appointed. Turns out Dubya’s kept a ringer on the panel a year beyond his term, Democrat Karl Sandstrom, expressly for the purpose of stifling reform. (He appointed a new Republican to the FEC in March.) Hmmm…why am I picturing Karl Rove and Mitch McConnell in a smoke-filled room?
Trickle to a Flood.
“You have so tortured this law, it’s beyond silly,” Let the gutting commence. By a vote of 5-to-1, the FEC approves exemptions in McCain-Feingold that already have the interest groups smiling. This is not good.