Russ Feingold: “The main point I make, in conclusion, is that I believe in maybe 20 or 30 years people will say: You know, there was a…”

“The main point I make, in conclusion, is that I believe in maybe 20 or 30 years people will say: You know, there was a time when Members of Congress could actually ask people for $100,000, $500,000, or a million-dollar contribution, and it was perfectly legal. I think it will remind people of the stories we have heard about how there used to be briefcases full of cash floating around this building. It is almost unbelievable that there ever was a time in our recent history--in the last few years--when these kinds of almost inherently corrupt contributions could be given from corporate treasuries, union treasuries, or by individuals. It was a loophole that completely swallowed all the laws we had. They were imperfect laws. The hard money rules were the rules we had concerns about when we started this initiative. We wanted to fix that.”