Pete Domenici: “Mr. President, before I deliver my prepared remarks, I want to comment on a few things I heard on the floor. I tried at…”

“Mr. President, before I deliver my prepared remarks, I want to comment on a few things I heard on the floor. I tried at one point to ask a question of the distinguished Senator from Arkansas, Senator Bumpers, who made a lot about lack of participation in the American democracy and especially with reference to campaign contributions. If I read him right, he said because the big money is so influential and powerful, if you will, other people don't think they ought to be giving, as if other people weren't giving. The truth of the matter is that in every campaign, including the last time, more individuals gave small contributions and medium-size contributions than in the history of the Republic. At the pace they are on now, it looks like they are going to do that again. Now, how much is enough? I don't know. But to say that because there are big contributions, people aren't participating, you can go over and ask the Republican Party where most of its contributions come from for the regular activities of the parties, they will tell you from small contributions, and they are there by the hundreds of thousands.”