by Jon Dainty Sr.

Created on: October 04, 2007   Last Updated: March 19, 2008

THE POWER OF GOLD
Here's your quiz: if Candidate X chooses to accept no private money and opts for public financing only, what will Lobbyist Z do with his huge war chest? This is not as far-out as you might think, because a lot of Americans want to find assurance that their vote means something in an election campaign of the not-too-distant future. This time there is hope for a sensible, workable resolution of the problem.

Two powerful senators, Democrat Dick Durbin and Republican Arlen Specter, have proposed that candidates show their election worthiness by collecting signatures and small contributions from people who are eligible to vote for them. If this step is successful, they can legally bind themselves to accept no private funding for the rest of the campaign. The Congress can put this in place, and one wonders whether Mr. Bush would sign such a measure (currently titled "Fair Elections Now Act").

SPECIAL INTERESTS NEED NOT APPLY
Some people are screaming already, "It's not fair; I wanted to give money to Candidate X." It's the candidate's choice to restrict his or her campaign to public funding, all of which is accounted and paid with tax dollars. There can be no huge donations from corporations, trade unions, political action committees, or private citizens. This clears the way for cutting the strings of obligation that seem to bind our representatives' hands now, strings attached to hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars of "gifts." Anyone who believes there are no return expectations when you give someone a million dollars lives in a saner world than this one!

A FAIR GAME FOR A FAIR RACE
The theory behind the Act is that big money will still be required to take federal offices in elections, and if that is the case, that big money should be equally available to all running for the offices. Imagine a level playing field for all those seeking office; it is a dream that might just come true.

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