JOHN LINDER: “I think it is fascinating to watch the hue and cry for campaign finance reform from the Democrats when they controlled…”

“I think it is fascinating to watch the hue and cry for campaign finance reform from the Democrats when they controlled the House, the Senate, and the White House 4 years ago and chose not to bring it up. The fact of the matter is we have two kinds of campaign financing systems in America; one is congressional. We could only take $1,000 from an individual or $5,000 from a PAC, we must report everything we receive and everything we spend, and that system did not break down, and no one is accusing it of having broken down. There is another system for Presidential campaigns. If they accept $75 million of taxpayer money, they may not spend a penny more. That is precisely what Bob Dole did; that is not what President Clinton did. He accepted the $75 million, and he spent $40 million more than that. He admitted to doing that, but he said it was necessary to break the law because 'we would have lost.' Now, I do not want to see America pay for the congressional races, with ceilings on them like they did for the White House, and have that system so easily abused as it was by President Clinton. Let us move on with this bill which allows bringing up the bill for veterans' benefits, let us pass this rule and get on with the business of the House.”