Joe Lieberman: “I wish to respond to several statements that Senator Bennett made. We will have a fuller debate, I am sure, before he…”

“I wish to respond to several statements that Senator Bennett made. We will have a fuller debate, I am sure, before he asks for a vote on his amendment. But for the record, for the information of my colleagues, I wish to speak in favor of what I believe is one of the most important elements of this lobbying reform legislation. The original provision, sponsored in committee by my friend from Michigan, Senator Levin, and myself, requires, for the first time, disclosure of so-called paid grassroots lobbying. Much has been said--I fear, too much of it not on point--about this provision and its purported impact on free speech. I wish to reassure my colleagues that those claims about this provision are not true.”