Political Quotes

“in our efforts, our bipartisan efforts over a period of the last several years to forge a partnership between Republicans and Democrats and find an agreement to comprehensive campaign finance reform, we have made a number of agreements and concessions along the way. We have a majority of the Members of this body who I believe and many of us believe now favor the McCain-Feingold, Shays-Meehan legislation. The only thing that can defeat the Shays-Meehan legislation is an effort to have an amendment that is harmful to our ability to get it passed. I believe strongly that we should vote on this amendment. If Members are concerned about the specifics of this amendment, we voted and sent the bill over to the United States Senate, we can deal with it that way, or we can deal with it through the Commission as part of the bill that this House passed. We sent a Commission bill, gave them the responsibility to look at what changes there ought to be, other changes, in the campaign finance law. This may well be an unconstitutional provision. The Commission would have an opportunity to talk to constitutional scholars and determine whether or not this should be part of some other amendment at some other time. What we need to do at this point is to move forward, to get through this very cumbersome, difficult process, and have a vote up-or-down on the Shays-Meehan bill.”