Posted on 03/22/2002 1:12:55 PM PST by Jim Robinson
For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
March 15, 2001
President Bush Outlines Campaign Reform Principles
March 15, 2001
The Honorable Trent Lott
Senate Majority Leader
S-230, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator Lott:
As the Senate prepares to consider campaign finance reform legislation, I wanted to highlight my principles for reform. I am committed to working with the Congress to ensure that fair and balanced campaign reform legislation is enacted.
These principles represent my framework for assessing campaign finance reform legislation. I remain open to other ideas to meet shared goals.
I am hopeful that, working together, we can achieve responsible campaign finance reforms.
Sincerely,
George W. Bush
Campaign Finance Reform
President Bush's Reform Principles
Protect Rights of Individuals to Participate in Democracy: President Bush believes democracy is first and foremost about the rights of individuals to express their views. He supports strengthening the role of individuals in the political process by: 1) updating the limits established more than two decades ago on individual giving to candidates and national parties; and 2) protecting the rights of citizen groups to engage in issue advocacy.
Maintain Strong Political Parties: President Bush believes political parties play an essential role in making America's democratic system operate. He wants to maintain the strength of parties, and not to weaken them. Any reform should help political parties more fully engage citizens in the political process and encourage them to express their views and to vote.
Ban Corporate and Union Soft Money: Corporations and labor unions spend millions of dollars every election cycle in unregulated 'soft? money to influence federal elections. President Bush supports a ban on unregulated corporate and union contributions of soft money to political parties.
Eliminate Involuntary Contributions: President Bush believes no one should be forced to support a candidate or cause against his or her will. He therefore supports two parallel reforms: 1) legislation to prohibit corporations from using treasury funds for political activity without the permission of shareholders; and 2) legislation to require unions to obtain authorization from each dues-paying worker before spending those dues on activities unrelated to collective bargaining.
Require Full and Prompt Disclosure: President Bush also believes that in an open society, the best safeguard against abuse is full disclosure. He supports full, prompt and constitutionally permissible disclosure of contributions and expenditures designed to influence the outcome of federal elections, so voters will have complete and timely information on which to make informed decisions.
Promote Fair, Balanced, Constitutional Approach: President Bush believes reform should not favor any one party over another or incumbents over challengers. Both corporations and unions should be prohibited from giving soft money to political parties, and both corporations and unions should have to obtain permission from their stockholders or dues-paying workers before spending treasury funds or dues on politics. 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.
For what it's worth, this is the only argument for Bush signing CFR that makes any sense to me.
The point is that Beck actually gave Union members prior restraint over paying their dues without the threat of losing membership. Beck stated that 79% of his dues were being used for support of the DNC and won the right to withhold 79% of his dues until the situation was corrected to his satisfaction. That has more direct impact than on the union than after the fact authorization.
Ashcroft has no option but to defend. However, Ted Olsen can give an opinion as to what Ashcroft should argue. The Solicitor General is empowered to decide what cases should be defended and how to defend them. Solicitors General are listened to very carefully by the courts and it was a stroke of genius for McConnell to have tapped Starr who was Bush the first's solicitor general and a former Clerk in the Supreme Court.
I take your comments as a personal insult. You disagree with someones opinion and another freeper( who takes his name from a song written by a couple of junkies) accuses you of having Clintonian morals.
Only on FR.
As I understand it, paycheck protection would come PRIOR to the authorization. The union leaders would have to get permission from each individual member BEFORE they spend the money.
Just because you might not believe in the truth doesn't make it a lie. Republicans will NEVER deliver your freedoms back to you. NEVER. I've seen proof of this with my own eyes from WATCHING what they've DONE, rather than your preference of constantly BELIEVING what they've SAID.
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