Political Quotes

“I think this debate has pointed out the difficulty we are all trying to come to grips with. We are looking for symmetry between what we can do as candidates and what we can do as Senators. But there is no symmetry. The Senate has gone on record in favor of the Bumpers amendment to reduce the value of a gift that can be given down to zero. If you follow the logic and apply it to campaigns, then you eliminate all contributions to campaigns other than through public financing. We have yet to take that step, and there are very few who are willing to take that step. Bumpers says no gift of any kind. Yet, contributors, lobbyists, PAC's, and CEO's can all contribute substantial amounts to our campaign funds. So we have a great disconnect. We are not going to resolve that issue here tonight by saying we should have one rule for campaigns, but another for gifts and charitable events. I agree with Senator Levin; this amendment would in fact amount to a reversal of what we did this morning, and I would argue we ought not to accept it.”