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UE ISSUES BRIEFING
Campaign
Finance Reform

CONFRONTING
CORPORATE
POWER

Issue
Briefings:

Job Killing Free Trade Schemes: FTAA and 'Fast Track'

Defending Public Education

Tax Cuts for the Rich

Five Attacks on Working People (overtime pay, free speech, TEAM Act, 'Right-to-Work', Anti-Salting Bill)

Confronting Energy Profiteers

Protecting Social Security

• Campaign Finance Reform

RELATED:

Protect and Defend Social Security (UE Policy, 2000-01)

Stop the Southward NAFTA Expansion- No to the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) (UE Policy, 2000-01)

Stop the Attack on Public Education  (UE Policy, 2000-01)

Saving Social Security by Destroying It? (UE News)

Online Social Security Workshop

A Tale of Two Citizens (Capitol Hill Shop Steward)

Hands-Off Social Security! (UE Political Action)

Support Real Labor Law Reform

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Political
Action

UPDATE, SUMMER 2001

The push for campaign finance reform has now moved to the House of Representatives, after the Senate passed its version (S27) of the "McCain-Feingold" bill on April 2. While the Senate bill is certainly not a cure-all, its provisions would limit to some degree the amounts of PAC money able to be spent during political campaigns. Looming over this entire matter is the question of constitutionality — many legal experts predict that the current legislation will be declared unconstitutional when finally challenged in court. Despite the shortcomings of McCain-Feingold, and despite the constitutional question, lawmakers should be urged to move forward on this front as at least one way to begin a clean-up of our corrupt political fund raising morass.


There is no longer any doubt that the tidal wave of money pouring into our political process from corporate sources and the wealthy elite has totally corrupted our democratic institutions. The evidence is all around us. George W. Bush is the hand-picked front man for financial interests who raised over $300 million to see him elected. President Clinton brazenly sold a pardon to fugitive financier and unionbuster Marc Rich, in return for donations funneled to the Democrats and Clinton himself. Lawmakers and candidates now spend more time raising money to run for election and re-election than actually performing their jobs as elected officials.

The problem is obvious; the solution is not. The most well-known legislation that aims to control this disgraceful situation is the "McCain-Feingold" bill, named for the two U.S. Senators who have promoted it. While its intent is healthy, the final consequences of its passage may not be. While the bill should be credited with raising the profile of the campaign finance reform issue, it unfortunately may end up further reducing the political abilities of organized labor. One school of thought suggests that our system is already so polluted that the "McCain-Feingold" bill would at least begin to clean it up. As this bill begins to move through Congress working people should be prepared to demand that lawmakers do whatever is needed to restore financial integrity, public confidence and trust to our political system.

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