PRESS RELEASE
Thursday: Nov. 21, 2002
Contact: James Bopp, Jr., General Counsel
Phone 812/232-2434; Fax 812/235-3685
jboppjr@bopplaw.com, www.jamesmadisoncenter.org

 

Campaign Finance "Reformers" Refute Under Oath
What They Say in Briefs About "Corruption"
 

         
On November 20, Madison Center lawyers revealed, in briefs filed in the case of McConnell v. FEC (D.C. federal district court) that lawyers for campaign finance "reformers" were saying issue advocacy causes corruption in their briefs while the "reform" groups were saying the opposite when under oath in depositions.

In the case, which challenges the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 ("BCRA"),  Sen. McCain argues in briefing that elected officials could be corrupted by issue ads near elections because the officials might be "grateful" to those who supported their issues. But of course Sen. McCain would never admit that he is corrupted by gratitude to groups that supported his pet BCRA legislation. And when his cohorts Common Cause and Campaign for America were questioned under oath about their own issue advocacy near elections on behalf of BCRA, they swear no corruption exists.

Apparently, it's only those "other" groups whose freedom of speech and association corrupts. For example, on January 10, 2000, when Gov. Bush and Sen. McCain were seeking the Republican presidential nomination in New Hampshire, National Right to Life Committee issued a press release and ran a radio ad, entitled "You Have a Right to Remain . . . Silent," that focused on the McCain-Feingold legislation leading to BCRA. That's corrupting, say "reformers."

But as the same New Hampshire primaries approached, Common Cause ("CC") staged an event with candidate Senators McCain and Bradley, extolling their support for BCRA-style legislation. During the series of primary seasons, CC issued press releases trashing Gov. Bush's campaign finance proposals and extolling Sen. Gore's. Three weeks before the November 2000 election, CC published a "Reform Report Card," grading legislators on "reform" and listing persons signing a "Public Integrity Pledge" to support "reform." Under oath in McConnell v. FEC, CC swore all of this had a legitimate legislative purpose, was not corrupting, and was not intended to affect federal elections.

The sole purpose of Campaign for America ("CFA"), which is primarily or solely funded by super-rich Jerome Kohlberg, is to enact BCRA-style legislation. Although it's not a PAC, CFA ran two ads so strongly opposing federal congressional candidate Jim Bunning and supporting Scotty Baesler, "a leader for campaign finance reform, that CFA decided it better file two independent reports with the FEC. But under oath, CFA swore its "sole purpose was to have Campaign Finance Reform." CFA also published a Legislative Report Card giving a "Thumbs Up" to Sen. McCain and his confederates supporting BCRA-style legislation and ran radio ads asking people to pressure legislators to pass BCRA-style legislation. Yet its sole purpose was to educate the public, never to influence a federal election, and it was clearly not corrupting, swore CFA.

James Madison Center general counsel James Bopp, Jr., who represents Plaintiffs in McConnell v. FEC, declared: "This is a clear case of 'do as I say, not as I do.' If it's not corrupting for McCain and his cronies, then its not corrupting for ordinary citizens who band together in citizen groups to amplify their voices on issues dear to their own hearts." "If their action isn't corrupting when they are under oath, these 'reformers' shouldn't be arguing that citizen groups are corrupting when they're not under oath," he added. "We believe what they say under oath, when it counts," he concluded, "there is no corruption by issue advocacy."

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