Posted on 01/18/2007 7:47:15 AM PST by neverdem
Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) has told conservative activists that he will vote to strip a key provision on grassroots lobbying from the reform package he previously supported.
The provision would require grassroots organizations to report on their fundraising activities and is strongly opposed by groups such as the National Right to Life Committee, Gun Owners of America, and the American Civil Liberties Union.
While grassroots groups on both sides of the political spectrum oppose the proposal, social conservative leaders such as Dr. James Dobson, founder of Focus on the Family, who broadcasts a radio program to hundreds of thousands of evangelical Christians, have been its most vehement critics.
McCain sponsored legislation last Congress that included an even broader requirement for grassroots lobbying coalitions to reveal their financial donors. But now he will vote to defeat a similar measure.
It would be politically dangerous for McCain to support disclosure because it would anger many conservative activists, including those who advocate against abortion rights or for gun ownership rights. He is courting many of them for his 2008 presidential campaign. McCain’s presidential exploratory committee announced yesterday that Maxine Sieleman, a socially conservative leader who founded the Iowa chapter of Concerned Women for America, had joined its camp.
In letters circulated on Capitol Hill this week, the National Right to Life Committee and Gun Owners of America warned senators that votes on the grassroots lobbying provision would affect legislative scorecards they tabulate for each lawmaker.
Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) has sponsored the amendment to the lobbying reform package that would strip the provision. His amendment is expected to come to the floor for a vote today, said advocates opposing it.
Bennett said he was “a little” surprised to hear that McCain would support him but was “delighted.” McCain is considered one of the most authoritative voices on ethics- and lobbying-related issues in the Senate.
“It’s a very high priority,” said Douglas Johnson, director of legislative affairs for the National Right to Life Committee. Johnson said ordinary grassroots activists from Arizona who had called McCain’s office were told by aides that he would support Bennett’s amendment.
Jay Sekulow, chief counsel for the conservative American Center for Law and Justice, told The Hill that he had received confirmation from McCain’s staff yesterday that he would oppose the disclosure proposal.
“It’s huge,” Sekulow said of the issue’s importance. “It’s the most significant restriction on grassroots activity in recent history. I’d put it up there with the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act.”
McCain was the chief sponsor of the landmark 2002 campaign finance bill, a history that still angers many conservatives. They cite McCain’s sponsorship of that legislation as something that makes them wary about supporting his presidential bid. But McCain’s recent action could redefine him.
“He’ll do everything he can to appeal to conservatives he has already tried to silence,” said John Velleco, director of federal affairs at Gun Owners of America, referring to McCain’s support of campaign finance reform. “I think he’s trying to gain the support of conservatives as much as he can.”
“Romney’s doing the same thing,” Velleco added, explaining that McCain’s rival for the nomination, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, is re-evaluating his past positions on gun ownership rights.
While McCain has privately told conservative groups that he will side with them, he was not ready to reveal his position yesterday. He opened yesterday’s floor debate with a 15-minute speech on the lobbying reforms under consideration. While he urged his colleagues to support the creation of an office of public integrity, he made no mention of grassroots lobbying.
Immediately afterward he declined to state his position on grassroots disclosure.
“I’ll address it when it comes up,” he told The Hill.
But McCain’s spokeswoman, Eileen McMenamin, confirmed that he would support the Bennett amendment.
“Initially when Sen. McCain introduced legislation last year it had a grassroots provision,” she said. “Subsequent to that that he got a lot of feedback from groups that the requirements would be too onerous on them because of the reporting requirements.”
McMenamin added that a grassroots lobbying disclosure requirement was not included in reform legislation McCain introduced at the beginning of this month.
Johnson, of the National Right to Life Committee, said that there is confusion about which groups would be affected by the pending regulation.
“Under Section 220, anyone who is paid anything by an organization that spends any money at all to encourage more than 500 members of the general public to communicate with members of Congress, if he or she also has contacted congressional offices directly as few as two times, and has spent as little as 20 percent of his or her time on such direct lobbying and grassroots-motivating activities, would be required to register with Congress as a ‘lobbyist’ and file detailed quarterly reports,” wrote Johnson in a letter to Senate offices, adding, “If enacted, it will disrupt the constitutionally protected activities of thousands of issue-oriented citizen groups from coast to coast. …”
McCain’s past allies in battles to reform government strongly support disclosure and were surprised to discover his position had changed.
“We saw him supporting it last year,” said Craig Holman, a lobbyist for Public Citizen.
“It surprises me and it will surprise the rest of the reform community. I was really expecting him not to get involved in that provision and I had received no indication from his office that he was leaning against it.”
Waddya wanna bet McCain will demand that the Christian Right "owes him a favor" afterwards? Politicians don't give this stuff away for free, you know.
You sure are, LOL!
Doesn't matter. The Constitution is what some judge says it is...
McCain is on the record as being hostile to the Christian Right, hence his smart-ass comments about Jerry Falwell after their meeting. He has burned the bridges to the Religious Right, and there is no mending them now.
I agree. McCain is a legend in his own mind, which is quite unstable even without drugs.
Ship the illegals outta this country. Shoot them if they try to reenter and deal only with those people that respect our laws and sovereignty as a free nation.
TOM TANCREDO for President '08
It is both amazing and terrifying that a statement like this is presented as a fact in a news article. No evidence is presented to back up the statement (considered by whom?) We are to simply read it and accept it. Really, this is just an opinion that is passed of as fact, and the terrifying part is that all they do is make a statement, and people automatically accept it. It's the Big Lie in action.
Doesn't say much about their concept of ethics.
Not by anyone that knows him.
That comment from the Hill was referring to those who know him in the Senate. I don't see the members of the Senate as being very ethical with regard to the rights of the people, including adhering to the very few laws that forbid infringement.
He was for the provision before he was against it.>>>>>>>>>>
McCain is beginning to see the RNC informal poll results on RINO candidiates. He realizes that he will never win the election , if he gets the nomination, and is now trying to rebuilt bridges he burned last year in his Gang of 14 activities in the Senate. He's like all politicians who fail to act on principle and resort to Machiavellien politics continuously, as the ass catches up with the head. He turns into a Kerry flip flopper.
The sooner McCain is gone the better. He simply needs retirement badly, real badly.
This provision affected some bloggers in "all groups". Unions and bloggers in other groups were exempted from it.
McCain-Feingold is also unconstitutional but the Supreme Court gods didn't see it that way.
So we are stuck with legislation that may not be constitutional but it stands until it is ruled unconstitutional BY the Supreme Court. The Legislative Branch is not prohibited from submitted such law, the question is only whether it will stand.
What difference does all this make?... He is still a funny... just "posturing" for political convenience... That is what WELL PAID ** CONSULTANTES ** Suppose to do!... Transforming him into an "Altar-Boy."
The questions is... Are we so stupid as to buy it? :)
I suggest you look back on the Republican Primary debates from 2000.
On January 7, 2000, in a debate in South Carolina, candidates were asked to name their biggest mistake made as an adult and what they learned from it.
Orrin Hatch said he had made so many he couldn't name one.
Gary Bauer refused to discuss any personal mistakes.
Steve Forbes referred to editorials he had written calling for positions such as raising gas taxes.
Alan Keyes said that was between him and his priest.
George W. Bush said it was trading Sammy Sosa to the Cubs
John McCain said it was his involvement in the Keating 5 scandal, and said it "will always be a mark on my record and something that people will judge me for the rest of my life."
It's rather interesting the number of candidates, including Bush, who weaseled their way around that question.
Okay...so McCainiac says the common people can't be trusted so we must be monitored religiously while Congress can do whatever the hell it wants without censure.
McCainiac says us Christians are scary people that are too close to the GOP.
Then the loser decides to run for President again, Dobson smacks him hard alongside the had announcing he'll never vote for him and his attempts to silence our free speech is part of the reason and suddenly he backtracks on his many years track record.
I hope all the people that have bashed Dobson and Christians (the Armey's of the world and certain people selfishly only concerned with their wants and needs mostly on the fiscal side) are taking note the ONLY reason McCain has reversed his stance (temporarily as it'll flip eventually) is because DOBSON spoke out against him and he wants the Christian Right's vote. Take note of who your real enemies are.
As to McCainiac, only one thing drives me right now since I do NOT Trust Republicans anymore then Dems right now. And that is taking down McCain in '08. Payback is coming for what he spent the last years doing that led to '06.
MF is not unconstitutional. Congress is explicitly empowered to regulate federal elections. It is also one of the most ineffectual and easiest to get around laws I have ever seen. BAD law and unconstitutional law are not the same thing.
Right.
Nothing he can do to make me support him. He had his chance when we needed him.
Too late now.
I have seen nothing exempting Unions from the provisions under discussion.
You should like this news:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1769682/posts
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