I would argue that all contributions MUST be public - including those to PACs. Why? Because if I contribute to candidate X, his campaign has my check. THEY know who I am, but no one else. If I contribute through some anonymous source (if such is required), then I WILL let the campaign know in some way if I want influence (”hey, did you see that contribution on June 3 for $100,000.62? Yeah, the ONLY one for that amount on that day - well, that was ME. Want more? Then here’s what I need....”).
No, it must all be public, so that EVERYONE can see who (or what organization) gave funds (and if an organization, then ITS list of donors must be available)...and if legislation is later proposed that benefits the donor only, then the dots can be connected.
No, it must all be public, so that EVERYONE can see who (or what organization) gave funds (and if an organization, then ITS list of donors must be available)...and if legislation is later proposed that benefits the donor only, then the dots can be connected.
The idea is that the donation amounts are not revealed to the recipient's campaign, only the total of donations per time period. Once a flat tax or Fair tax is in place, the remnants of the IRS can become the distribution vehicle for the funds. It should be a felony to reveal or attempt to discover the source of a donation.
As far as "everyone can see" goes, what makes us think they'll start watching? Most Americans are too busy worrying about which star outdanced the others or who got kicked off the island to pay attention to campaign donations! And we're going to expect them to connect the dots?
Will some try to cheat? Of course! But a few donors and recipients frogmarched out in handcuffs for violations will slow THAT down.