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ACTION ALERT! TELL BUSH "NO" ON CFR!!!!!
FR Network Leadership Council ^ | 3/20/2002 | Diotima

Posted on 03/20/2002 1:06:31 PM PST by diotima

TELL
PRESIDENT BUSH TO
VETO
CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
 
 
 

WHY CAMPAIGN FINANCE "REFORM" IS BAD FOR AMERICA!

 1. IT STIFLES FREE SPEECH! The First Amendment of the Constitution states...

      "CONGRESS shall make no law ... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the
      right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of
      grievances."

 The restrictions this bill places on political advertising 60 days before an election and 30 days before a
 primary directly impact the freedom of speech guaranteed by the First Amendment. The Representatives,
 Senators and President that we elect all swear an oath to preserve and protect the Constitution - NOT to
 ignore and undermine the Constitution.

 2. IT EMPOWERS THE MEDIA! While groups are restricted in putting on ads before an election, the
 broadcast media will increase its power to “educate” voters. TV and radio reporters have a long history of
 putting their own bias into candidate profiles and interviews, and the media conglomerates are highly
 selective about what they cover. An opponent's events are just politics, but anything the incumbent does is
 considered news.

 3. IT EMPOWERS INCUMBENTS! By making less information available about candidates in the critical time period before elections, incumbents are removing another source of criticism about their records. Shortly before elections is the precise time when most voters are seeking out such information. That's why knowledgeable people refer to this bill as: The Incumbent Security Act. The impact of this bill would mean that incumbents are more likely to stay in office than ever before.

 4. IT KEEPS VOTERS IN THE DARK! As a voter, you deserve the opportunity to make up your own
 mind about the candidates with information from any source you choose.

 5. IT DISCOURAGES VOTER PARTICIPATION! Campaign reform proponents say voter apathy and cynicism demands that the influence of "special interests" in politics be reduced. Voters are not cynical
 because of how much money is spent on election campaigns. They are cynical because they believe their
 elected officials rarely do what is best for the country, but more often do what is best to stay in office. AND BINGO! Campaign Finance Reform will help keep incumbents in office!
 
 

      RELEVANT QUOTATIONS ABOUT FREEDOM OF SPEECH

      In the free society ordained by our constitution, it is not the government, but the people--individually as citizens and candidates and collectively as associations and political committees--who must retain control over the quantity and range of debate on public issues in a political campaign. - U.S. Supreme Court, Buckley v. Valeo

      The liberty of speaking and writing guards our other liberties. - Thomas Jefferson


 
The First Amendment Action Network- a joint project between
The American Conservative Union and FreeRepublic Network

View Message from David Keene: The chairman of the ACU discusses the next stage in the struggle over Campaign Finance Reform, and what you can do to take action to stop it.

QuickTime Format
Windows Media Format
RealMedia Format

Join First Amendment Action Network HERE

CALL PRESIDENT BUSH TODAY! TELL HIM TO VETO CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM AND PROTECT YOUR FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS!

WHITE HOUSE SWITCHBOARD: 202-456-1414
WHITE HOUSE FAX: 202-456-2461
 EMAIL: president@whitehouse.gov

 Compiled by The Free Republic Network - www.freerepublic.net
 Special thanks to dittomom and the Leadership Council for the talking points!


TOPICS: Activism/Chapters; Breaking News
KEYWORDS: cfr
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To: Sabertooth
Can't you find one that isn't yawning??? It makes him boring.
301 posted on 03/21/2002 8:26:54 PM PST by DJ88
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To: Sabertooth
I always thought it would be neat to have a lepord as a pet.
302 posted on 03/21/2002 8:28:00 PM PST by FreedominJesusChrist
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To: FreedominJesusChrist
"but most people are concerned about the here and now at this present moment. "

OK, LOL....you go ahead and live in your "present moment".....I did that in 2000, when I worked hard to take the trash out of the WH. The unconstitutional process of x42 motivated me to volunteer to see he and his VP gutted from the WH. Yes, I was mad about it! And I'd expect to see these "constitutionalist" freepers concerned about senators who voted for CFR. But alas, that's not what I see! I see a feeding frenzy against the president, who hasn't acted yet. Now I have to wonder, what are the motives here?

303 posted on 03/21/2002 8:28:21 PM PST by A Citizen Reporter
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To: A Citizen Reporter
Lets see, I'm trying to see a downside to your sugestion....NOPE, can't find one. :-)
I do wonder if the President really understands the depth of the feelings about this piece of (incert expletive here). If he signs this he'll be spending a large amount time time trying to rebuild his standing with the right, I for one wish him a lot of luck he'll need it.
304 posted on 03/21/2002 8:40:23 PM PST by Valin
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To: A Citizen Reporter
I remember many threads on here when CFR was going through Congress...the point is that now the President has to make the right and constitutional decision; its all in his hands. To those who have been given a lot of responsiblity, much is expected of them. I, along with many others here, don't think it's going to happen.
305 posted on 03/21/2002 8:43:21 PM PST by FreedominJesusChrist
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To: A Citizen Reporter
And I'd expect to see these "constitutionalist" freepers concerned about senators who voted for CFR. But alas, that's not what I see!

5 words, Paul Wellstone and Mark Dayton. Just what is a person supposed to do when you've got the dumb and dumber of politics?

306 posted on 03/21/2002 8:44:04 PM PST by Valin
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To: Amelia
We wrote, and got the same answer these people did.


David A. Keene, Chairman, American Conservative Union
Paul Beckner, Citizens for a Sound Economy
Thomas P. Kilgannon, Freedom Alliance
Ward Connerly, American Civil Rights Institute
Grover Norquist, Americans for Tax Reform
Ken Connor, Family Research Council
L. Brent Bozell, Conservative Victory Committee
Morton Blackwell, Conservative Leadership PAC
Eric M. Licht, President, Coalitions for America
William Mellor, General Counsel, Institute for Justice
J.P. Backlin, Legislative Director, Christian Coalition
Craig Shirley, Craig Shirley & Associates
Mark R. Levin, Landmark Legal Foundation
Gary Aldrich, CNP Action, Inc
Kellyanne Conway, The Polling Company / Woman Trend
Alan M. Gottlieb, Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
Charles W. Jarvis, United Seniors Association
Lewis K. Uhler, National Tax Limitation Committee
Bruce W. Eberle, Eberle Communications Group
Jim Martin, 60 Plus Association
Andrea Lafferty, Traditional Values Coalition
Tom Phillips, President, Phillips PAC
Cleta Mitchell, Attorney, Washington D.C.
John Berthoud, National Taxpayers Union
David Keating, Club for Growth Advocacy
Jeff Hollingsworth, The National Conservative Campaign Fund
Fred L. Smith Jr., President, Competitive Enterprise Institute
James C. Roberts, American Studies Center
Richard A. Viguerie, ConservativeHQ.com
Richard Norman, The Richard Norman Company
David M. Bossie, Citizens United
Audrey Mullen, Patriot PAC
Elaine Donnelly, Center for Military Readiness
Chuck Muth, Republican Liberty Caucus
Robert Funk, American Shareholders Association
Bob Johnson, Chairman, Free Republic Network
Amy Ridenour, The National Center for Public Policy Research(a)
Allen Roth, New York State Conservative Party
Young Conservatives of Texas, David B. Kopel
Marc Levin, Columnist, National Review Online(a)
Austin Ruse, Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute(a)
Shaun Marie Levine, Executive Director, Conservative Party of New York
Edwin Moore, James Madison Institute(a)
Steve Baldwin, CNP Action, Inc.
Jennifer Holder, NoInternetTax.org
Larry Pratt, Gun Owners of America
D. Eric Schippers, Center for Individual Freedom
David Almasi, Director of Project 21(a)
Charles W. Baird, Director, The Smith Center
Joan L. Hueter, American Council for Immigration Reform
Star Parker, Coalition on Urban Renewal & Education
Jake Haulk, Allegheny Institute for Public Policy(a)
James Parmelee, Republicans United for Tax Relief
John Taylor, Virginia Institute of Public Policy(a)
Brandon Dutcher, Oklahoma Council for Public Affairs(a)
Gary Jarmin, Christian Voice
Farha Ahmed, Muslim American Republican Caucus
Greg Kaza, Arkansas Policy Foundation(a)
Larry Cirigano, CatholicVote.org
Richard Falknor, Maryland Taxpayers Association
Gerry Dickinson, South Carolina Policy Council Education
Foundation(a)
Darrell McKigney, Small Business Survival Committee
R. N. Dwight Patel, Director, Association of Concerned Taxpayers
Julie Versnel, American Political Action Committee

Nothing

307 posted on 03/21/2002 8:44:17 PM PST by rdf
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To: FreedominJesusChrist; valin
"I remember many threads on here when CFR was going through Congress.."

Good golly, I hope that you are working very hard to defeat those senators who voted for CFR, from any state (and there are many ways you could help).....as you are to devoting time to prognosticate on what the President intends to do with this bill.

308 posted on 03/21/2002 8:50:33 PM PST by A Citizen Reporter
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To: RamsNo1
You completely missed my point re: Clinton signing welfare reform.
His base (liberal democrats) hated the bill, but he (finally) signed it anyway, because it was in HIS political interest to do so.
BJ knew he could get away with ANYTHING with his base, because they would vote for him no matter what.
309 posted on 03/21/2002 8:50:45 PM PST by MamaLucci
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To: A Citizen Reporter
And you are better because...you aren't holding President Bush to his word either. Hey, what can I say? For your argument, it's a Catch-22 either way. Find a better strategy to argue your point.
310 posted on 03/21/2002 8:52:25 PM PST by FreedominJesusChrist
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To: FreedominJesusChrist
"For your argument, it's a Catch-22 either way.

Why would that be?

311 posted on 03/21/2002 8:57:55 PM PST by A Citizen Reporter
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To: rdf
Forgive me for the criticism Richard, but are you intentionally trying to make your "who's who" of "every important conservative a little longer, by listing a few of the same names twice, with different titles?
312 posted on 03/21/2002 9:00:41 PM PST by A Citizen Reporter
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To: A Citizen Reporter
I am unaware of duplications, though there may be some. I took the list from the American Conservative Union's letter, which may be found here:

ACU Letter

The letter reads as follows:

By American Conservative Union
CNSNews.com Information Services

(Editor's note: What follows is the text of a letter to President George W. Bush from American conservatives, who want the president to veto new campaign finance restrictions passed by Congress. The Senate gave final approval to the bill on Wednesday.)

President George W. Bush
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington D.C. 20500
March 20, 2002,/pre>

Dear Mr. President:

On behalf of the nearly one million members and supporters of the American Conservative Union, and the millions more represented by those groups who have co-signed this letter, we are writing to urge you to veto the ill-conceived and unconstitutional Campaign Finance "Reform" bill, passed by the House last month, and the U.S. Senate this afternoon.

As we have said all along, this is not about politics, but about principle.

It is a travesty that so many Members of Congress-on both sides of the aisle- seem to have either forgotten about or chose to intentionally ignore their oaths to "support and defend the Constitution" when they cast their votes on this legislation. It is, frankly, sad that such an affront to freedom has actually made it to the desk of the President of the United States.

Much of the debate over this legislation focused on which party will be helped or hurt by its various provisions, with very few commentators addressing the core questions of whether or not the sorts of restrictions on political speech envisioned by the bill's authors are either wise or Constitutional.

We don't know which party will ultimately benefit or be hurt by this legislation and what's more, we don't care. The bill making its way to your desk completely redefines political speech and outlaws or criminalizes speech that every American has always believed to be protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. Looked at from our perspective, you are being asked to sign a bill that tells those who might want to criticize the actions of politicians to just shut up.

We understand fully the reasons why you have taken the position up to now that Congress could not count on a Presidential veto on this legislation and must therefore work to fashion something that is fair, effective and, yes, Constitutional. Well, Congress had its chance ... and failed.

So now it's up to you!

You can pass the buck to the courts and hope that they will straighten out this mess. Or, you can veto it for what it is.... A bad bill that criminalizes political speech and deserves to be sent back from whence it came.

If there was ever a time to use the veto pen this is it. We urge you to veto this legislation.

If you can honestly say that you believe legislated restrictions on political speech is at the core of what our Founders wanted, by all means, sign the bill. But if you believe the proposed restrictions won't pass muster by a Supreme Court that actually believes in free speech, please, do everyone a favor by vetoing it.

Yours Sincerely,

********

The names follow

******

In any event, I am proud to associate myself with the letter ... and no offense taken to your post, FWIW

Cheers,

Richard F.

313 posted on 03/21/2002 9:13:47 PM PST by rdf
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To: A Citizen Reporter
Well, for one, we are stressing different sides of the same issue--politicians who won't keep their word. You happen to be harping on Senators and I happen to be harping on President Bush. Either way, someone isn't being kept accountable and that is what makes your argument a Catch-22.
314 posted on 03/21/2002 9:20:39 PM PST by FreedominJesusChrist
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To: Concerto in D
BUMP




315 posted on 03/21/2002 10:12:46 PM PST by survivalforum.com
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To: diotima
We've all gotta calm down and let the Idiot-Left do this CFR thing to themselves. 1) The money will always control campaigns regardless of the foolish, tail-chasing laws they get passed. 2) The media will, it's true, be greatly impowered but because of 1), the big money interests that McCainiac so hates will just...BUY THE MEDIA! Left-wing media will be replaced by power-broker media and they will have a VESTED INTEREST in the capitalism the left hates! 3) Meanwhile, the individual contribution limits will be the Only thing about this bill that the Supreme Court doesn't toss out on its ears. There...doesn't that make you feel better?!
316 posted on 03/21/2002 10:28:51 PM PST by cartoonistx
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To: diotima
Morning Bump!
317 posted on 03/22/2002 4:12:37 AM PST by Valin
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To: Sabertooth
Is there any way you will learn STRATEGY and ever get a grasp of REALITY? There are not 535 people like Tom DeLay, Dick Armey, Phil Gramm, and Jesee Helms in Congress.

You want `em, get them elected. But don't complain when the votes don't go there because you ran off like some two-year old in a hissy fit!

318 posted on 03/22/2002 4:49:32 AM PST by hchutch
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To: Sabertooth
Well, what is the better defense? Kill it temproarily, and deal with crap from rthe media, or set this thing up to be killed PERMANENTLY?

Seriously, I think a lot of people here need to study political strategy, like the stuff Horowitz writes, and to also take a more objective look at the situation. My earlier post on this thread reflected a lot of frustration with a number of people here. The blithely ignore political realities and fail to realize we can't get there from here.

319 posted on 03/22/2002 5:00:57 AM PST by hchutch
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To: hchutch
Well, what is the better defense? Kill (CFR) temproarily, and deal with crap from rthe media, or set this thing up to be killed PERMANENTLY?

Kill it now. The media wasn't able to get Americans interested in CFR with Clinton at President in peacetime...

What makes you think they could with Bush during wartime?

Seriously, relax. CFR is a paper tiger.

Seriously, I think a lot of people here need to study political strategy, like the stuff Horowitz writes, and to also take a more objective look at the situation. My earlier post on this thread reflected a lot of frustration with a number of people here. The blithely ignore political realities and fail to realize we can't get there from here.

Frankly, I don't think you're looking at political reality.

Nor am I sure you understand Horowitz, who advocates taking the political fight to the opposition, and winning hearts and minds across the country with a combination of confidence and right principles.

That doesn't happen by passing the buck to the Supreme Court.




320 posted on 03/22/2002 5:44:20 AM PST by Sabertooth
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