Kendra S. Horn: “If you will recall, a few years ago Members in this House were able to retire and take the campaign fund they had in…”

“If you will recall, a few years ago Members in this House were able to retire and take the campaign fund they had in their bank account with them. In some cases, that meant they could take $1 million into retirement. That no longer can be done. Congress finally faced up to the idiocy of that operation. But you mentioned these office funds at the State legislature. One of the things eventually we are going to have to deal with, and I am going to put in a bill this year on that, among other things we are all going to do, is dealing with leadership PAC's, where whether it be the other body in this Congress, or this body, regardless of party, you have major leaders with PAC's that they have built up. That is why some of them are major leaders. That is why some of them 5, 10, 15 years ago have been major leaders, or Lyndon Johnson in the 40's and 50's, is they raised the money in their State, they doled it out to the Members, and, guess what? The Members that they doled it out to just happened to vote for them when Congress reconvenes and chooses its leaders. That is a further influence of money that often overcomes talent.”