[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 16 (Thursday, February 26, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1070-S1071]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. CONRAD:
  S. 1681. A bill to shorten the campaign period for congressional 
elections; to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


                      campaign finance legislation

  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I want to commend the Senator from 
Wisconsin, Senator Feingold. Nobody has shown a greater commitment to 
try to change the system that is broken than the Senator from 
Wisconsin. He has worked diligently with Members on the other side of 
the aisle to fashion a plan that would command a majority of support.
  I am certain there are people watching today who wonder how can it be 
that a majority is in favor but it does not get passed, because we all 
learn in our civics classes that majority rules in America. Well, 
majority rules at election time; unfortunately, it does not rule on the 
floor of the U.S. Senate because, if it did, McCain-Feingold would be 
passed with votes to spare and we would have our first serious reform 
of the campaign financing system in this country in years. Is there any 
question that it is needed? Is there any American who seriously 
believes that the system that we have is the right system? I can tell 
you, as one who has run three times for the U.S. Senate, this system is 
broken, this system is rotten, this system is corrupting and it ought 
to be changed.
  Mr. President, last October we began this debate--last October. We 
resumed it on Monday. And once again we appear to be in gridlock on 
this important issue. During my 11 years in the Senate, there have been 
numerous attempts to address the problems that confront the financing 
of American elections. Unfortunately, all of these initiatives have 
failed. It is clear, I think, now more than ever that we

[[Page S1071]]

need to change the system. Simply put, campaigns are too long and they 
are too expensive. I tell you, anywhere I go in my constituency, people 
say to me, ``Gee, do we really have to be subjected to ads for a 
year?''
  In my last campaign, the campaign ads started almost a year before 
the election. And we are not the exception. People are saying, ``Wait a 
minute. That is too much.'' I saw last night on television, 
Presidential candidates are already in New Hampshire, and the election 
is 3 years away. Campaigns are too long and they are too expensive.
  That is why today I am introducing legislation that will reduce the 
length and the cost of campaigns. I think increasingly the electorate 
is saying to us, ``look, shorten these campaigns. That's the one sure 
way to reduce the money that is flowing into them.''
  During the 1996 election cycle, we saw record amounts of money spent 
on campaigns. Total costs for congressional elections have increased 
sixfold since 1976. We can see back in 1976, all congressional 
campaigns, $99 million. Look at this, up, up, and away; every election, 
up, up, up--$765 million in the last election cycle.
  Where does this stop? We have Senators who are supposed to be raising 
$10,000 a day. It is the average for a Senator to run a campaign. There 
is talk now in California that a typical Senate race will cost $30 
million. We are turning Senators into full-time fundraisers. Is that 
what we want in this country? I do not think so. I do not think that is 
what the American people want us to be doing with our time.
  Let me go to the next chart that shows the average cost of winning a 
Senate seat went from $600,000 in 1976--$600,000--to nearly $4 million 
today. Those increased costs are primarily due to the skyrocketing cost 
of campaign advertising.
  Let me go to the next chart. The total amount of money spent on 
campaign advertising jumped nearly eightfold during this period, from 
$51 million in 1976 to over $400 million in 1996.
  It has been estimated that television advertising accounts for nearly 
half of the funds spent on Senate campaigns.
  Clearly, candidates are being forced to spend too much time raising 
campaign money and not enough time debating the issues adn listening to 
the concerns of the voters. Our current system threatens to push 
average Americans out of the electoral process.
  I hear it all the time when we go out to recruit candidates--how can 
I possibly raise that amount of money to be competitive? Now, that 
should not be the determinant. The determinant on whether somebody is a 
candidate should be their qualifications, their skills and abilities to 
serve their constituents.
  In 1960, the total amount of money spent on all political campaigns 
in the United States was $175 million. In 1996, that figure increased 
to $4 billion. Here it is, $175 million in 1960, $4 billion in 1996.
  What has happened to participation? Participation was 63 percent of 
the American people who voted in 1960. In 1996, less than half of those 
eligible voted. People are turning off to this process. One of the big 
reasons is the money. They know money is dominating political campaigns 
in America and they are sick of it and they fell disenfranchised by it. 
Most people understand the corrosive effect of the current campaign 
system.
  The people of my State, and I believe the people of the Nation, want 
the system changed. My legislation addresses in a fair and reasonable 
manner the problems associated with the length and costs of campaigns. 
Under my bill, if candidates agree to limit their campaign ads to 2 
months before a general election and 1 month before a primary election, 
they will receive reduced broadcast advertising rates. I have been 
advised by the Congressional Research Service that my proposal would be 
upheld as fully constitutional. Under current law, broadcasters must 
sell time to candidates at the lowest unit rate in the 45 days before a 
primary and the last 60 days before a general election. My bill 
modifies this provision by requiring broadcasters to sell time to 
eligible candidates at 50 percent of the lowest unit rate in the last 
30 days of a primary election and in the last 60 days of a general 
election. This time cannot be preempted.
  In addition, for a candidate to qualify, the ads must be at least 1 
minute in length. Broadcasters can't preempt this time. I want to 
emphasize that. Nonparticipating candidates will not be eligible for 
this lower rate. I would even support using broadcast spectrum revenues 
to offset the cost to broadcasters of these lower rates for candidates 
in order to provide an incentive for people to sign up for the shorter 
campaign period. I think that would be supported by not only both 
parties--I noted the majority leader indicated that he would strongly 
support reducing the length of campaigns, but I think it would also be 
welcomed by the American people who are tired of the deluge of 
political ads.
  My legislation will achieve this end in a constitutional manner and 
reduce the amount of money spent on campaigns. It is high time to 
change this system.
  I want to again commend the Senator from Wisconsin for his 
outstanding leadership on this subject and submit to my colleagues it 
is time for us to consider a radical restructuring of how we run our 
elections.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from North Dakota 
very much and look forward to looking carefully at his proposal.
                                 ______