Campaign funding must be a priority
Re “Money for nothing,” editorial, March 5
The Times asserts that Congress should wait until after the 2008 election before fixing the presidential public funding system. But we can safely predict what will happen in 2008 if the general election candidates go without public funding -- they will spend much of their time at $2,300-a-plate fundraisers, in a race for cash that will eclipse the debate over the real issues.
We shouldn’t wait to fix the system for 2012. The 2008 election is shaping up as a competitive contest, and no one can confidently predict the winner. It is a lot easier to update the system now than to wait until 2009, when partisan concerns about the 2012 elections will probably play a bigger role.
A reformed public financing system will make candidates less beholden to contributors and allow the public to judge the candidates on factors other than how much money they raise. We should not forget the lessons of Watergate. Let us hope that the election of 2008 does not provide a refresher course.
SEN. RUSS FEINGOLD
(D-Wis.)
The writer is the cosponsor of the 2002 McCain-Feingold campaign finance law.
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