[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 31, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H1786]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM

  (Mr. GEJDENSON asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. GEJDENSON. Mr. Speaker, there was some debate yesterday on the 
floor about whether or not the majority party, the Republicans, were 
serious, coming to the floor with a bad campaign finance reform 
proposal, and setting up a procedure that meant they needed two-thirds 
of the House, not one-half-of-the-House-plus-one to win.
  Well, I think there were two-thirds votes for something. There was 
two-thirds of the House at least that voted against the Republican 
proposal, and, frankly, it just shows how insincere this effort has 
been.
  Mr. Speaker, we need to take back the political system in a way that 
will give the American people confidence. We have to put limits on 
spending. We have to decrease the amount of money to campaigns, not 
increase the amount of money to campaigns, and we have to have an 
honest debate on this floor with not just the ideas that have been 
created inside the Republican caucus, which were even rejected by a 
large number of the Republicans, but the ideas that are out here in the 
American public.
  I have a proposal to limit spending to a $100 contribution from any 
person in the country; not thousands, not $25,000, not $75,000. Other 
people have other ideas. I believe in public financing. Many people 
agree with that; some disagree with that.
  We ought to have an honest debate about these issues, and not let it 
die with the sham that occurred last night.

                          ____________________