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"Clean Elections" has it's flaws, but overall I support Clean Elections laws. Clean Elections laws:
1) Remove big donor influence on candidates by publicly financing campaigns.
2) Allow candidates to focus on interacting with constituents rather than fund-raising efforts.
3) Level the playing field by funding candidates equally.
However, the presidential public financing system accomplishes none of these goals effectively. Candidates can still raise money from large donors through joint fund-raising committees. Effectively, this means that presidential candidates who are publicly financed are subject to big donor influence AND get a big chunk of taxpayer money to help support their campaign. Because candidates can still raise money through these joint fund-raising committees, they continued to contribute time to fund-raising efforts (see the article linked above). And, especially since the amount of public financing for presidential campaigns ($84 million) is considered to be inadequate to run a modern presidential campaign, the current system actually encourages this sort of end-run/loophole behavior.
Although Barack Obama opted out of presidential campaign public financing, if you support Clean Elections you should support Obama because:
a) Groups supporting Clean Elections have stated that the current presidential public financing system is out of date and flawed.
b) Obama has publicly supported public financing systems that do not share the presidential system's flaws, and is a cosponsor of the Fair Elections Now Act. McCain is not a cosponsor of this bill and...
c) While Obama opted out and McCain opted into public financing for the general campaign, and Obama's doing so constitutes a shift from earlier statements, McCain is hardly a consistent Clean Elections supporter. McCain opted into public financing for the primary, until he decided he could raise enough on his own, then he tried to opt out unilaterally (and also got himself involved in a loan deal that skirted the law) - which the FEC said he could not do, although they did eventually vote to release him from the obligation. And, while he supported the Arizona Clean Elections law, he now says he would not support a national Clean Elections system modeled after one's like Arizona's.
d) Despite the McCain campaign's complaints, the Obama campaign has been more transparent in disclosure of donors than the McCain campaign.
PS - On a more selfish note, on the same site linked just above, among the dominant industries giving to the Obama campaign is Education at #3 ($12.2 million). For McCain Education is at #16 ($1.5 million). It's pretty clear which candidate will be more interested in the interests of educators.
1) Remove big donor influence on candidates by publicly financing campaigns.
2) Allow candidates to focus on interacting with constituents rather than fund-raising efforts.
3) Level the playing field by funding candidates equally.
However, the presidential public financing system accomplishes none of these goals effectively. Candidates can still raise money from large donors through joint fund-raising committees. Effectively, this means that presidential candidates who are publicly financed are subject to big donor influence AND get a big chunk of taxpayer money to help support their campaign. Because candidates can still raise money through these joint fund-raising committees, they continued to contribute time to fund-raising efforts (see the article linked above). And, especially since the amount of public financing for presidential campaigns ($84 million) is considered to be inadequate to run a modern presidential campaign, the current system actually encourages this sort of end-run/loophole behavior.
Although Barack Obama opted out of presidential campaign public financing, if you support Clean Elections you should support Obama because:
a) Groups supporting Clean Elections have stated that the current presidential public financing system is out of date and flawed.
b) Obama has publicly supported public financing systems that do not share the presidential system's flaws, and is a cosponsor of the Fair Elections Now Act. McCain is not a cosponsor of this bill and...
c) While Obama opted out and McCain opted into public financing for the general campaign, and Obama's doing so constitutes a shift from earlier statements, McCain is hardly a consistent Clean Elections supporter. McCain opted into public financing for the primary, until he decided he could raise enough on his own, then he tried to opt out unilaterally (and also got himself involved in a loan deal that skirted the law) - which the FEC said he could not do, although they did eventually vote to release him from the obligation. And, while he supported the Arizona Clean Elections law, he now says he would not support a national Clean Elections system modeled after one's like Arizona's.
d) Despite the McCain campaign's complaints, the Obama campaign has been more transparent in disclosure of donors than the McCain campaign.
PS - On a more selfish note, on the same site linked just above, among the dominant industries giving to the Obama campaign is Education at #3 ($12.2 million). For McCain Education is at #16 ($1.5 million). It's pretty clear which candidate will be more interested in the interests of educators.
