[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 21]
[House]
[Page 28947]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1800
                       CAMPAIGN SPENDING DOOMSDAY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, for 60 years, the Bulletin of Atomic 
Scientists has operated the doomsday clock which measures the threat to 
civilization and counts the minutes under midnight. When it was first 
introduced in 1947, the doomsday clock measured only the nuclear 
threat. But now it takes climate change into account as well.
  But perhaps we need a different doomsday clock, a clock that will 
warn us about a different type of arms race that also threatens the 
future of our Republic. This arms race is not nuclear weaponry but 
instead uncontrolled escalation in campaign spending. Unbridled 
campaign spending represents the clearest, most present danger to our 
democratic ideals as a Republic.
  Here is the latest evidence. Just this week, the Center For 
Responsive Politics released the latest information about campaign 
spending in the 2008 presidential race.
  After 9 months of fundraising, says the Center, ``This Presidential 
money chase seems to be on track to collect an unprecedented $1 billion 
total. By some predictions, the eventual nominees will need to raise 
$500 million apiece to compete.'' $500 million apiece to compete. This 
is a tremendous amount of throw-weight, to borrow a Cold War term.
  ``After nine months of fundraising, the candidates for President in 
2008 have already raised about $420 million. This Presidential money 
chase seems to be on track to collect an unprecedented,'' and I repeat, 
``$1 billion total''. That is probably four to five times as much as 
was collected just 4 years ago. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton 
has raised nearly $100 million. On the Republican side, Mitt Romney is 
about half that amount, but Rudy Giuliani is just on his tracks. Barack 
Obama has raised about an equal amount to Senator Clinton.
  The projected Presidential spending will exceed the annual gross 
domestic product of 25 nations on this planet. Where is all this money 
coming from? If the Presidential campaign surpasses the $1 billion mark 
for the first time in our history, who will own the next President? 
Isn't that what the American people are asking? Will it be middle-class 
voters, who are holding on for dear life, ordinary working folks trying 
to pay for gasoline, put food on the table, pay insurance bills, pay 
utility bills, pay tuition costs, pay taxes? Will they have more 
influence over the next President of the United States? Or will the 
big-money special interests have more influence? We all know the answer 
to that question.
  The people are telling us they are deeply troubled. All the polls 
show the American people feel that Washington is totally out of step 
with them. It's hard to imagine a Presidential candidate who is not 
beholden to special interests. It's hard to imagine that a candidate 
who relies on hedge funds, multinationals and special interests will be 
able to stand up for the middle class in America. The middle class is 
asking where is the President, where is the Congress.
  What type of legacy is this leaving for our children? Will they not 
conclude our Republic is owned lock, stock and barrel by the rich and 
powerful? It sure looks that way. What will they think our Nation, once 
founded with the high ideals of patriotism, sacrifice and rebellion 
against entrenched interests? What has happened to that Republic?
  The dollar amounts being tossed around in the 2000 Presidential race 
make it only a matter time before another giant scandal rocks our 
government and further undermines the confidence in our body politic 
and our very system of government. We must curb this arms race now 
before it's too late.
  H. Con. Res. 6, which I have introduced, reaffirms that presence of 
unlimited amounts of money is corrupting our political process in a 
fundamental manner. I encourage my colleagues to join me in 
cosponsoring this legislation and for Americans to pay attention and 
call this important issue to the attention of their representatives and 
of those Presidential candidates when they whiz through town.
  America needs a new declaration of independence to take our politics 
back from the money handlers, the bundlers, the lobbyists, the spin 
doctors and the telemarketers, which is what Presidential campaigns 
have become, telemarketing, with $1 billion being put on television.
  Let's return our Republic, if we can, to the American people and, 
more importantly, a free Republic to our children.

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