Russ Feingold: “We are pleased to join former Presidents Bush, Carter and Ford in expressing the hope that the current Congress enact…”

“We are pleased to join former Presidents Bush, Carter and Ford in expressing the hope that the current Congress enact meaningful bipartisan campaign finance reform legislation. This includes the names of people like the distinguished former Member Nancy Kassebaum Baker, former Senator from Kansas; Howard Baker, Jr., former leader and Senator from Tennessee; former Republican Senator John Danforth of Missouri, who I had the honor to serve with briefly; former Senator Mark Hatfield of Oregon; former Senator Walter Mondale and former Vice President; former Senator Bill Bradley from New Jersey; former minority leader of the other body, Robert Michel; former U.S. Senator Sam Nunn; former Senator Al Simpson, the Senator from Wyoming with whom I disagreed frequently on the floor of the Senate who was among the toughest and most clever opponents you could have on the floor, but he cosponsored the McCain-Feingold bill last session after he made his retirement announcement, and he still supports it. And the list goes on. Mr. President, I do not think these folks are merely pawns of the media. These folks have been here; they have seen it; they have done it. And they know that spending a tremendous amount of your time in raising money is the corrupting of this process.”