Daschle digs in for around-the-clock fight to ban soft money as GOP threatens filibuster

SF Chronicle ^ | 3-18-02 | Zachary Coile

[Oldeconomybuyer]

Washington -- After seven years of trying, Senate campaign finance reform supporters expect to win final passage of a ban on soft money contributions by the end of this week. But approving the landmark measure may require a healthy supply of coffee and No-Doz .

[boomop1]

This will be a decisive stand which will determine who has balls.

[FairWitness]

From a related thread:

Indeed, labor economist Leo Troy of Rutgers University has testified before Congress that unions regularly spend an estimated $500 million during each two-year cycle to elect Democrats. Yet, only a relatively small portion of these funds — specifically, the soft money donations and the contributions from political action committees (PACs) — are disclosed.

The "Organized Labor Loophole" will be disastrous for Republicans.

[B4Ranch]

Filibuster????? LOL Not from the current GOP! They don't have the guts to do it!!

[linn37]

what do you mean we can't run a negative ad against your sorry butt right before elections?

Anyone actually have the quote by Bush that says he will sign this particular Bill?

[concerned about politics]

So....ummmmm....this bill was brought to the floor to "stop companies" like Enron from hurting their employees again. Remember? How can this bill stop another company from doing it again? It can't. It has nothing to do with it!
This is the Democrat bill of election dictatorship and capital control. Hail Hitler!

[concerned about politics]

Anyone actually have the quote by Bush that says he will sign this particular Bill?

I'm pretty sure he said "Send me a reasonable bill, and I'll sign it."
He then sent a list of items that had to be in the bill, including no group union dues, but individual contributions only.
I don't know, but I'll be shocked if he signs it.
It has NOTHING he wanted, and he took an oath to protect the Constitution. They're asking him to break the laws of our Republic by signing it. It's Constitutionally illegal!

[linn37]

I hope he sends it back instead of having to wait for the courts to clean it up.

[backhoe]

Silence, America!:

Silence, America!: for Silence, America!. 

Other Bump Lists at: Free Republic Bump List Register

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A further Mini-Editorial!

Folks, these clowns, corrupters, and frauds in Congress are trying to silence YOU!

Wake up, doggone it!

Rush and Hannity and all the hosts in the world can inveigh against this garbage day and night, but unless you actually do something about it, it will not matter one tiny iota!

Now is the time! If not now, when? When they arrest your wife or kids for "improper speech?"

Get off your rear ends and send some emails and faxes. Write letters, especially letters to editors.

Call talk shows- the local ones are easy to get on and reach a lot more people than you may realize.

This- right here, this "issue"- is where the rubber meets the road...

There are over 70,000 members here, and I know each of you knows at least two or three more people you can tell about this-- so do it! Now!

And tell them to tell 2 more people, and tell them to "pass this on to 2 more..."

The right to speak freely is as fundamental to a free society as the right to defend yourself against unprovoked attack. This is a frontal assault on your liberty and the freedom of your children and spouse.

It's time to move out, folks- march, or die....

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Here's a Note to Activists:

Want to do something? Go here:

Ignorance Making You Ill? Cure It!

for links, tools, & instructions about how to contact a pile of different people, and how to send a link to this story right here ( or anywhere else ) to a "mass email" using Outlook Express.

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I say again, people- it's time to speak up- or be forever silenced!

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A further aid for activists:

Sorry for the difficulties some of you experienced yesterday in reaching the
> web site to send out the 100 faxes to all 100 U.S. Senators through Sixty
> Second Activist.  The URL was so long it sometimes jumped to a second line
> in the transmission, thus breaking the link.  Here's a shorter link that
> should take you to where you need to go:
>
> https://secure.chargedcontribution.com/ATA_60s_Shays-Meehan2/gopnv.asp
> ( this link, while not free, allows you to send faxes to 100 senators for $21.... )

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I say one last time- speak up now, or be forever silenced!

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Neighbors, I'm flagging you because this is so important!

This abomination should have been laughed or hectored off the floor- not passed, as it was, by a bunch of clowns intent on quelling dissent and securing even more power.

Please take a few minutes to call, fax, write, or email your so-called representatives and tell them this is not acceptable, and that you are watching them.

Do not count on W to not sign this, or the Supreme Court to overturn it-- what if they don't?

What will you do then? It will be too late, by far, to turn back.

[MamaLucci]

"I think there probably should be some amendments, but the votes aren't there. It's going to pass. It's going to pass very quickly."

This is what passes for Republican "leadership" in the Senate.
I got a fundraising call from Tom Delay's office the other day,
I told the young woman that the party will not receive another penny from me
unless or until the Beck decision is enforced, and CFR is defeated (or vetoed).

[Orangedog]

Filibuster????? LOL Not from the current GOP! They don't have the guts to do it!!

Sad but true. Mounting a successful filibuster would require leadership. Lott is too much of a wussy to lead anything.

[concerned about politics]

President Bush Outlines Campaign Reform Principles

[concerned about politics]

PS....Here's what the White House said...

President Bush supports including a non-severability provision, so if any provision of the bill is found unconstitutional, the entire bill is sent back to Congress for further adjustments and deliberations. This provision will ensure fair and balanced campaign finance reform.

[krogers58]

"The penalty good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." - Plato

[RFP]

Hey DC Freepers: we should go over to the Sinate on Wednesday evening with a supply of NoDoze, coffee, cigarettes, soda, magazines, etc. to help McConnell, Gramm & Co. stay awake for this filibuster. Remember the cigarette trays that girls used to wear around their necks in old movies? ... something like that. Maybe Souropod and JV's Bro could bring their wigs.

Freedom Lover's Filibuster Supplies

Would be a good show of support, IMHO.

[bwteim]

bttt

[lowbridge]

To show he's serious, Daschle had a dozen cots delivered to the Capitol last week.

And to show he's serious, Lott has taken a sleeping pill.

[b4its2late]

Thanks for the ping, but IMHO, it's a lost cause and not worth the effort to attempt to derail it. I'm burned out worrying about it.

[Victoria Delsoul]

This abomination should have been laughed or hectored off the floor- not passed, as it was, by a bunch of clowns intent on quelling dissent and securing even more power.

I totally agree with you, backhoe.

[backhoe]

I can certainly understand that- I got involved in the right to keep & bear arms fight around 1967, and many times I have just thrown up my hands and walked away for a while.

And I certainly won't hector or berate you... but I will point out that this will only be the start- it will accelerate, escalate, and get worse from here.

CFR will be only the beginning of the Great Silencing.