Arlen Specter: “I will review the matter with the view to see if we can make it public. I am open to any modification which is…”

“I will review the matter with the view to see if we can make it public. I am open to any modification which is reasonable. I am not bound by any protocol, and I will go back to the providers of the list to see if it can be made available. But when the Senator from Illinois asserts that it is secret, he is simply wrong. It is not secret. He can look at it. I think he raises a good point when he says that nobody can make a copy of it. Offhand, on horseback, on one foot, I think staffers should be able to make a copy of it. Take the copy and show it to the Senator. I think that is reasonable, with the agreement of the staffer and the Senator that if we decide to retain the confidentiality, they will respect that. I trust Senator Durbin and I trust his staff to honor confidentiality if we stick with it. As I say, I will review that as well. But Senator Durbin has to make a decision. I am sure Senator Durbin has an open mind on this question. Now that I reflect on it, I am not so sure he does have an open mind on this question, and he doesn't have to have an open mind on this question. I think he raises a good point when he says we ought to know who contributes the money. I raised hell to get the information and finally had to raise a subpoena to get the information. We have it so that it is available for those who have to make a decision. When he carries the point further that he would like to see it made public, if I can accommodate that, I will.”