[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 128 (Tuesday, September 23, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H7612]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM NEEDED NOW

  (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, this weekend over a variety of 
morning news shows the comment was raised as to where are the defenders 
of the President and Vice President of the United States.
  I think, first of all, we should hold those offices, as we have done 
in years past, with great respect. But I do think that we will find in 
the wallowing of partisan politics those two individuals used as the 
most recent scapegoats in the refusal by the majority of this Congress 
to deal realistically and forthrightly with campaign finance reform.
  Over 50 percent of Americans have said ``The heck with both of you, 
Republicans and Democrats. You are both involved.'' So the real issue 
is not whether the President and Vice President acted within laws of 
which they did, but it is a question of addressing forthrightly the 
idea of cleaning up this mess called getting elected, through campaign 
finance reform.
  We believe that we should have campaign finance reform. The real 
issue is will the Republican leadership bring campaign finance reform 
to the floor of the House for us to address it realistically, or will 
they wallow in the continued accusations that make no sense, because 
one can easily point the finger at the other side of the room, and do 
nothing.

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