[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 33, Number 24 (Monday, June 16, 1997)]
[Page 859]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on the Federal Election Commission Decision on the Soft Money 
System in Domestic Politics

June 12, 1997

    I applaud the Federal Election Commission's unanimous decision to 
begin to consider my request that they act to ban soft money in Federal 
elections. This is an important step in our effort to reform our 
elections and restore the trust of the American people in their 
political system.
    As I said in my petition to the FEC, the rules governing our system 
of financing Federal election campaigns are sorely out of date. The 
system has been overwhelmed by a tide of money, raised in amounts and in 
ways that could not have been contemplated when the system was created 
two decades ago. I believe that the FEC has the authority and the 
obligation to take dramatic action, and I am pleased that five 
congressional sponsors of bipartisan campaign finance reform, led by 
Congressmen Shays and Meehan, have filed a similar petition before the 
Commission.
    I urge the FEC to take the next step and begin the process of 
writing new rules that will ban soft money. I hope this action will 
encourage Congress to enact comprehensive, bipartisan campaign finance 
reform.