Coming down hard on 'soft' money; casting the vote

Although tomorrow is election day, the moment when the American people wake from their slumber and remake the government in Washington, you could be forgiven for feeling pretty bleak about democracy right now. Millions of ordinary Americans will cast their votes on Tuesday against a backdrop of record-breaking campaign spending, dominated by America's biggest corporations and richest individuals. An avalanche of dollars has overshadowed the issues at stake in this election, and buried yet another cohort of Congressional representatives in promises and obligations to the wealthy rather than to ordinary citizens.

After 2000, when Republicans and Democrats accepted huge donations from Enron and other crooked companies, the momentum behind campaign finance reform was unstoppable. President Bush initially opposed the drive to clean up elections, but even he eventually signed the bill championed by Sen. John McCain and Sen. Russ Feingold. After the tawdry behavior of candidates and donors in the last election, we were promised that this new bill would restore integrity and decorum to the electoral process. Sadly, its provisions did not take force immediately: The 2002 races were exempted from the new rules, and have subsequently become a last hoorah for the old system. Republicans and Democrats have taken cash wherever they can find it; corporations or 'issue groups' have lavished money on commercials to sway particular races; candidates have made their quiet promises to companies or individuals that the dollars invested in a particular campaign will bring ample returns upon a candidate's election. In spite of the new legislation, the current election — with more than $650 million of spending — has meant business as usual.

Looking ahead to future elections, will the new legislation make a difference? Sadly, I don't think it will. It's true that the new laws are supposed to ban the raising and spending of 'soft money,' the huge, unregulated sums given to a particular party rather than an individual candidate. It already seems, however, that rich folks determined to offload their dollars will find a way around the new restrictions. The chief fund raiser for the Democratic Party, Terry McAuliffe, has already decided, according to The New York Times, that "this campaign finance reform stuff is nothing but junk," and he's working to set up new organizations which comply with the letter of the law even as they make a mockery of its spirit. The Republicans will no doubt follow suit, although they're not as interested in 'soft money' as the Democrats since they get most of their cash through direct contributions from wealthy individuals. (In fact, the McCain-Feingold bill doubles the limits for individual contributions.) Both major parties, for sure, have dismissed the wide popular support for campaign finance reform, and each continues to solicit donations from rich folks through any and every avenue.

What can be done about this? For one thing, you can educate yourself on who's giving money to whom. Big political donors have to register their donations publicly, and there's an excellent website (www.opensecrets.org) which connects you directly to the latest data from the Federal Election Commission. You can find out how much each corporation gives to each candidate, or search for donations by the employees of a particular company or organization (say, Microsoft, General Electric or even Princeton University). When you know who's funding a candidate, you can see the connections between their voting record and their financial dependency and you can get steamed about the current situation. Then you can channel your energy into battling for clean elections both federally and at the state level. Republican Sen. John McCain has already pledged to fight those from both major parties who aim to perpetuate the dominance of big money over politics; third parties, like the Minnesota-based Independence Party and the Greens, continue to place genuine campaign-finance reform at the core of their agendas.

Meanwhile, concerned citizens in many states (including Arizona and Maine) have won historic battles to ensure that local elections are publicly funded. Working from the grassroots level, this effort has drawn support from across the political spectrum, and provides a model of a clean democracy that points the way for other states and for federal elections. When you cast your vote tomorrow, regardless of which party or candidate gets your support, you should certainly feel pleased with yourself for making the effort to participate in the political process. However, a system where Congressional representation is essentially for sale to the highest bidder continues to fail the majority of Americans, those tens of millions of ordinary people who can't afford the asking price for their representative's attention. If you're one of these people, or you care about a government that's truly of, by and for the people (rather than the rich), then you'll recognize that the hard work begins on Wednesday, and tomorrow's vote is just a start. Nicholas Guyatt, a graduate student in the history department, is from Bristol, England. He can be reached at nsguyatt@princeton.edu.