Sign the Voters First Pledge at Public Campaign Action Fund, for volunteer public financing of federal elections

Public Campaign Action Fund is running a Voter Pledge drive for clean elections for federal candidates. Clean elections is another term for volunteer public financing of candidate campaigns. It can save the candidates from "dialing for dollars" every day in order to keep their campaign money flowing; this allows them to focus their time and energy on their important issues they want to share with the voters.

Please sign the 2008 Voters First Pledge right now, at Public Campaign-- you can help increase the pressure on lawmakers and candidates to back this needed reform. Thank you

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Participate in Fair Elections Action Week Monday April 14 to Friday April 18, 2008

The Fair Elections Now Coalition, a group of six public interest groups, is organizing this year's Fair Elections Action Week, which is Monday, April 14th to Friday, April 18. It will promote the Fair Elections Now Act (FENA) (S.1285) now being legislated in the US Senate. FENA would bring full public financing of elections to the US Senate.

Again, the dedicated web site for Fair Elections Action Week is at www.fairelectionsnow.org. Learn what you can do now, by downloading their activist toolkit. Activists are encouraged to participate locally, across this great nation. Bookmark the site to keep up with the latest updates! Thank you

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A look at clean elections in action

Candidates, and ultimately voters, are already enjoying clean elections in Maine. The first state in the nation to bring this campaign finance reform to state offices, it has been successfully administered since 1996. This local newspaper story is about a current state representative candidate- what qualifies him for the program, and how he is free from big money from special interests as reflected by his campaign issues and work.

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Watch video on public financing of elections

John Rauh, founder of Americans for Campaign Reform (Just $6) interviews best-selling author Frances Moore Lappe in an entertaining video about public financing of elections, or, as some call it, "clean elections".

Presently, this video clip is not picked up by users of the Firefox browser.
UPDATE: A commenter notified us that video works on Firefox. Thanks for letting us know!

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Look for possibly big money commercials by nonprofits later this election season

According to a Feb. 25th Mother Jones article, a shift of major campaign funds from candidates and parties to individuals will take place later this election season. And 501(c)(4) nonprofit organizations may have a say on what commercials will be aired right before the November general elections.

Even if the two eventual major party presidential candidates accept the public financing system for their general election campaigns this fall, they will have little say or control over people outside their campaigns advertising for or against them costing millions of dollars.

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Let we, the people finance our next president's candidacy

I have just submitted a letter to the editor to my local newspaper, the Abilene (TX) Reporter-News. It's about Clean Elections-- public financing in light of super duper Tuesday primaries coming next week. I don't know if they'll publish it in time, as it's only several days away.

Super Duper Tuesday will include presidential primaries for 20 states on February 5th. It will require a large coffer of funds from each of the remaining candidates in order to reach all of the voters across the widely dispersed states that include California and New York. The best way to handle this is Clean Elections-- public financing of elections supplies a central fund provided by the U.S. taxpayer. It will not give amounts in favor of some candidates over others, thus leaving the issues the main focus of the campaign trail. Wouldn't it be nice to keep special interest money out of the campaign of our future leader? Clean elections leave the candidates free for speaking openly, and not for begging for dollars.

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Where do the Republican presidential candidates stand?

All of the Democratic candidates for president support public financing of elections. We see Republicans supporting public financing in Congress and state legislatures all over the country. How about the Republican presidential candidates?

The presidential "bully pulpit" can move Congress on issues, especially in the new president's first months in office. Let's ask those Republicans still in the primaries where they stand. Public Citizen, a public interest organization promoting Clean Elections, is running a campaign to do just that:

The Republican candidates talk about changing Washington but have refused -- so far -- to support policies that bite the hands that feed their campaigns.

Tell the GOP presidential candidates that real change means supporting policies that put voters ahead of big money in presidential and congressional elections.

After we collect signatures on this petition, we'll fax each of the Republican presidential candidates a letter on February 4th, the day before Super Tuesday on February 5th, to urge them to support public financing.

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Tell the FEC NO on this Friday's ruling about presidential public financing

Public Campaign has issued a letter to the FEC (Federal Election Commission) concerning the public financing of presidential elections. The FEC is considering a ruling that would prevent some small-dollar donations given through the web from triggering public matching funds for candidates who have opted into the system.

The FEC vote for this is scheduled for this Friday, December 14. Public Campaign urges us to turn down this new rule, so that small donors can keep a stake in the race for presidential campaign contributions. If you agree, please take action here to "sign" Public Campaign's letter to the FEC.

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Call your U.S. Representative to co-sponsor the Fair Elections Now Act

Common Cause, a participant public interest group in this ongoing Fair Elections Action Week, has a notice out that the U.S. House now has a sister bill to the Senate's Fair Elections Now Act. Please see this blog's November 12, 2007 post for more information about the senate bill; if you agree to further legislation with this U.S. House bill, please take action at this webpage, or just call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 .

At the end of last week, Rep. John Larson (D-CT), member of the House Leadership and new champion of "Fair Elections" public financing reform, sent a letter to the entire U.S. House asking for original cosponsors of his Fair Elections Now Act, a sister bill to the Durbin-Specter bill of the same name in the Senate.
Larson comes from the newest "Clean Elections" state, Connecticut, which will offer full public funding to candidates for state office who accept spending limits and swear off special interest cash in the 2008 election. He's also someone, like Durbin, who is simply tired of the fundraising arms race and the corrosive influence of big money on our political system.
Months ago we declared this Fair Elections Action Week--with events for public funding of campaigns happening throughout the country--and now there's a key opportunity to push this issue in Congress. We're asking folks to call their representatives and ask them to be original cosponsors of Rep. Larson's Fair Elections Now Act--so please make a call today and help give this bill some momentum and some new supporters! If you don't want to leave your call information with Common Cause, just call the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121 and ask for your U.S. Representative's office to leave your message.

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Tell your U.S. Senators to vote YES for Fair Elections Now Act

Citizen activists across this country have come together this week, November 12-16, 2007, to support clean elections. A website is devoted just to this, called Fair Elections Action Week.

The increase in government corruption in the last few years has shown a need to publicly-finance our elections. Private fundraising takes way too much of the candidates' time, including that of the incumbent, your own representative. With clean elections, all qualified candidates who personally raise a set amount of individual contributions can commit much more of their own time exclusively with the voters. No more full-time fundraising. More interacting with the people.

Several states and lower levels of government have recently been successful with clean elections. The time is now to tell our local, state and national representatives to implement public financing of elections. Right now in congress, Senators Durbin of Illinois and Specter of Penn. is sponsoring S 1285, Fair Elections Now Act. Tell your two US Senators in Washington, DC today to co-sponsor or vote yes for this clean elections bill, by email from their websites, by phone or by visiting their local offices.

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Upload your question to the presidential candidates, and vote for your favorite!

10 Questions is an "ask the presidential candidate" website through the use of videos. You ask your question on video, then upload it to 10 Questions; then, viewers will vote up or down for the best videos to forward to the candidates. Check it out; be careful of the home page, as it is slow due to all of the videos. Also, vote up for the "clean elections" clip!

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Vote UP (yes) on the new S 1285 clean elections bill

S 1285, the Fair Elections Now Act, is the Senate version of public financing of campaigns legislation that is also going through the House. If both houses pass their own versions, they will settle in conference on one to send to President Bush. It will then be hoped that Bush will sign the final legislation into law.

S 1285 is very early in the legislative process still; however, http://www.washingtonwatch.org/ has begun an internet poll on whether people like the bill or not. It is now on All Things Reform, in the left hand column for you to vote yourself! I have, and noticed that not too many people on the 'net have voted on this bill yet; so, your vote can make a real impact. I have also added a bill status information box.

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Get ready now for Fair Elections Week, November 12-16, 2007

Fair Elections Now! is a website devoted to the upcoming Fair Elections Week of November 12-16, 2007. It is run by the Fair Elections Now Coalition, which includes Brennan Center for Justice, Common Cause, Democracy Matters, Public Campaign, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.

Fair Elections Week is a great opportunity for supporters of public financing of campaigns. Instead of relying only on fundraising drives, candidates can focus their attention on the race at hand, and, most importantly, on the voters.

At Fair Elections Now!, there are several things everyone can do to participate and make the Week a success. I, personally have signed up already to host an event in my town. I have already signed the petition to support Clean Elections. I have read what's posted on the website's bulletin board. There are indeed many ways to get involved for this worthy campaign fianance reform cause, just by going to the website.

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Support the Alaska Clean Elections Act

The Public Campaign Action Fund is running a petition drive to bring full public financing to state races in Alaska. And with several legislators now indicted for ethics violations, now is a great time to promote clean elections.

Accusations and guilty pleas of political corruption have been running high in Alaska. Four current and former legislators have been indicted on corruption and bribery charges while two corporate executives and a lobbyist have pled guilty to the same.

Alaska's elections should be about voters and not special interest donors--both honest and dishonest ones. Support Clean Elections campaign reform. Sign our petition below and tell others so we can build our base and make our elections about voters and volunteers instead of dollars and donors.

Alaska Clean Elections Act petition.

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All presidential candidates should co-sponsor/ endorse presidential public financing fix

A group of six government reform groups, who often work together in Washington, D.C., has issued a press release urging all presidential candidates to co-sponsor/ endorse legislation to fix the present presidential public financing system.

Campaign Legal Center - Common Cause - Democracy 21 - League of Women Voters - Public Citizen - U.S. PIRG
_________________________________________________________________
Press Release, September 14, 2007, http://www.democracy21.org/ _________________________________________________________________
Reform Groups Urge Presidential Candidates to Co-Sponsor, Or, if not in Congress, Endorse, Legislation to Fix Presidential Public Financing System

September 14, 2007
Our groups strongly urge you and other presidential candidates to co-sponsor, or, if not in Congress, to endorse, legislation introduced in Congress to repair the presidential public financing system.
The organizations include the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.
The recent published stories involving bundler Norman Hsu have only served to reinforce the dangers of privately-funded presidential campaigns driven by unlimited campaign spending and increasingly dependent on bundlers to raise huge amounts of money.
It is essential to the health of our democracy and to the integrity of the presidency to avoid having the nation's highest office on the auction block and presidential candidates engaged in a never-ending race to raise and spend ever-growing amounts of private contributions.
As The New York Times recently stated in an editorial endorsing legislation to fix the presidential public financing system (September 12, 2007):
For 30 years after the Watergate scandal, the nation did well by the public financing campaign system, which served as a cleaner alternative to private political money. Congress let that die on the vine, failing to raise subsidy levels to meet campaign inflation. The result is candidates' gratefully wooing bundlers and selling privileged access -- with far too few questions asked.
And as The Washington Post recently stated in an editorial (September 12, 2007):
If the system of providing candidates with federal matching funds for their primary campaigns and full financing for the general election were overhauled to make participation more attractive, candidates would limit the amounts they spend -- and have less need for the Hsus of the world.
The problems with the presidential funding system today are primarily the result of the failure of Congress to take any action to modernize and update the system since it was enacted more than thirty years ago. These problems can and must be solved.
For example, the spending limits for presidential primaries are far too low to meet the costs of running a modern presidential primary campaign. And sufficient public funds are not made available to presidential candidates to run competitive primary campaigns.
Legislation to repair the presidential public financing system has been introduced in the Senate (S.436) by Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI) and co-sponsored by Senator Barack Obama (D-IL). Companion legislation has been introduced in the House (H.R.776) by Representatives David Price (D-NC), Christopher Shays (R-CT), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Todd Platts (R-PA).
The legislation increases the spending limits and the amount of public funds available for candidates who opt into the presidential system. It also includes adjustments to allow candidates who opt into the system to run competitive races against candidates who opt-out of the system and substantially outspend the spending limits for opt-in candidates.
The legislation also requires presidential candidates to disclose the individuals who bundle contributions for them and the total amounts they bundle. The significance of bundlers, however, would be greatly reduced in an effective public financing system. While the legislation would not take effect until 2009, reflecting the practical realities of the 2008 presidential race, enacting this legislation as soon as possible is critical to protecting the presidency and our democracy in future years.
We strongly urge you to co-sponsor this legislation if you are in Congress, or to endorse it if you are not, and to publicly commit to working for its enactment if you are elected President.
We would appreciate your responding to this letter from our organizations by email addressed to esaloutsi@democracy21.org or by mail addressed to Elenia Saloutsi, Democracy 21, 1875 I Street, NW, Suite 500, Washington, D.C. 20006. Campaign Legal Center, League of Women Voters, Common Cause, Public Citizen, Democracy 21, U.S. PIRG
# # #
Released: Friday, September 14, 2007

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Speech! Speech! 2

I make a point of reading on a daily basis several political reform blogs; one in particular I like is the Public Campaign Action Fund blog-- it promotes Public Campaign's work for public financing of elections. Clean elections is indeed the solution to many of today's campaign ethics problems on the federal, state and other levels of government.

It's not common I commit a whole post to another person's post and comments, but since it includes a comment by yours truly, I wanted to share this one from Public Campaign's own, Kathy Schlieper.

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