Mike Levin: “this vote is a test of this institution, but even more it is a test of ourselves. We have heard it said the public does…”

“this vote is a test of this institution, but even more it is a test of ourselves. We have heard it said the public does not care, but that misreads what the public is really saying in oft-quoted surveys, that they believe those in power do not care how the public feels or what they want done, reform of a system where money too often counts more than the public's vote or voice. The opposition has invoked in this debate first amendment free speech protections, though on other occasions they have not hesitated to vote for proposals to amend that vital part of the Constitution. Shays- Meehan does not hinder free speech; indeed, it protects the voices of regular citizens by controlling large sums of unregulated, undisclosed money now drowning out their voices. We in the political maelstrom know better than anyone else that the status quo in financing campaigns is not working. Money, once said the mother's milk of politics, is increasingly becoming its poison. Shays- Meehan is a serious effort to stem and to begin to reverse this flow. It requires our support.”