Campaign finance conundrum; great article from Mother Jones

[blondeatlast]

http://www.motherjones.com/news/qa/2004/03/03_401.html

(snip)
MJ.com: But Kerry can't compete if he doesn't raise a lot of cash, even though he's pushed for campaign finance reform. Do you have any sympathy for his predicament?

CL: I do. Both candidates are close to special interests. But there's one small difference: Bush has raised $300 million in his ten or twelve year political career. Kerry has raised $60 million, or a fifth of that, in twice as many years. That's useful context. Does that mean Kerry doesn't have ties to special interests? No, and they're even substantial, but they're nothing like Bush's.

The Democrats have a conundrum, they always have had. This is a gross overgeneralization but I'm going to make it anyway. The Democrats feel our pain and feel terrible about special interests and how dirty politics is, and they even go so far as to give speeches about cleaning up politics, and occasionally even support legislation to clean it up. Republicans, with the exception of folks like John McCain, are about as silent as you can be on the subject of cleaning up politics. They don't make a peep, for fear they'll be criticized for their hypocrisy. I don't know what's worse. They're both in up to their neck with the powers-that-be and are substantially beholden to special interests when they're writing public policy and making policy decisions.

But Kerry, if you talk to the McCains and the Feingolds, is regarded as a serious fellow who has supported reform, including the most pure and most controversial form of reform, public financing, for 20 years. And he's been there as one of the most loyal and most devoted supporters of McCain-Feingold at every turn. But he still has a hypocrisy issue.

more...

[cryofan]

1. Why is it that most of the best threads on DU get so few comments?

Meanwhile bullshit threads get dozens of posts?

[blondeatlast]

2. Thanks, I'm glad SOMEONE noticed.

I can't wait to read the 2004 version. If I can, cause if *it's* re-elected, I doubt it will be published!

[Feanorcurufinwe]

4. Cuz there's nothing to flame about

[Laughing Mirror]

5. because nobody wants to admit the presidential campaigns

are bought and paid for by the money men, yes even John Kerry's, impossible though it may be to believe, and that our system of "electing" a president is rotten and corrupt to the very core.

Great article by the way, and thanks for bringing it to the attention of at least a few concerned citizens.

[GreenPartyVoter]

3. I love having Publicly financed campaigns here in Maine

I just wish that they were mandatory. Still, 3/4s of our legislature ran and won on clean election financing. Chalk it up to old Yankee tight-fistedness, I guess. *g*

[bread_and_roses]

6. Very good article

Well worth reading. Makes it very clear that with Kerry/Special Interests there is a lesser of two evils choice. But also makes clear just how MUCH lesser...by such a factor that there is not much comparison.

Interesting remarks on anomoly of the collapse of the Dean campaign.

Even some grounds for hope.

Thanks for posting it.

[MoonRiver]

7. Thanks.

We all need to put things into perspective and get into the real here-and-now world, for God's sake!

[mobuto]

8. But there's no difference between Bush and Kerry!

Kerry's Bush-lite I tell you!

cough

[tinanator]

9. No he isnt!

He's bargain basement Bush