THE UN-SILVER BULLET
REES, MATTHEW
THE UN-SILVER BULLET by Matthew Rees DURING THE SIX MONTHS he’s been running for Congress, Paul Ryan, a Republican, estimates he’s spoken to 30,000 people. When he’s asked questions, Social...
...The good news for Democrats was that 71 percent said campaign-finance reform was either “very important” or “somewhat important...
...This meant an “open rule,” whereby multiple campaign-reform bills could be considered, as could an unlimited number of amendments...
...Says a Republican aide involved with crafting the party’s campaign-reform strategy, “We always knew this was a dumb issue for Democrats...
...Matthew Rees is a staff writer for THE WEEKLY STANDARD...
...A recent ABC News/Washington Post poll asked people about 16 issues, ranging from tax reform to foreign affairs, and how much importance they attached to each...
...Yet the bills were to be brought up only under a special rule requiring that they pass with a two-thirds majority...
...When he’s asked questions, Social Security and taxes almost always come up...
...Gephardt, who had pledged a major effort in the bill’s behalf, never even came to the House floor the evening it was being debated...
...He brought seven other House Republicans together—they dubbed themselves the Free Speech Coalition—to fight the Shays-Meehan bill, and one of their first acts was to bring to the floor a constitutional amendment empowering Congress and the states to set campaign-spending limits...
...The Free Speech Coalition followed up by drafting hundreds of amendments to the campaignfinance bills...
...But when it looked like Shays and Meehan were going to succeed in forcing the bill to the floor through an extraparliamentary maneuver, House Republican leaders moved to bring up other campaign-reform legislation...
...Republicans weren’t always so confident...
...So how many people have pressed him for his views on campaign-finance reform...
...The goal was simple—slow the bill’s movement through the House and embarrass the Clinton administration...
...That arrangement collapsed in April when a few Republicans, and most Democrats, threatened to revive the extraparliamentary maneuvering if the Shays-Meehan bill wasn’t brought up as well...
...These poll numbers got wide circulation in Republican circles last week, and they bolster longstanding GOP sentiment that no one ever pays a political price for opposing campaign-finance reform...
...The dearth of attention given to campaign reform in Ryan’s southeastern Wisconsin district—normally a hotbed of good-government activism—doesn’t bode well for Democratic candidates nationally...
...We just didn’t know they’d be dumb enough to get so bogged down with it...
...Other amendments still pending include a requirement that the White House disclose the names of all the people who fly on Air Force One—a dig at Clinton’s alleged use of the plane to reward big contributors—and an affirmation that a “controlling legal authority” exists barring fund-raising on federal property (a dig at Vice President Gore...
...Moreover, the reformers couldn’t make a stink about an open rule— and didn’t—because it reflected their desire for “fair and open” debate...
...Somewhere between three and six,” says Ryan...
...The last time Republicans filibustered on campaign-finance reform shortly before an election was 1994...
...Armed with the open rule, DeLay stayed on the offensive...
...While it would result in some legislative chaos, it would prolong debate on a Democratic-oriented issue few voters care about...
...He scored a handy victory when 345 House members voted against the Gephardt proposal, and only 29 voted for it...
...This was pure mischief, as the amendment had been originally proposed by Richard Gephardt, the House Democratic leader, and had no chance of passage...
...Martin Meehan, a liberal Massachusetts Democrat...
...Chris Shays, a moderate Connecticut Republican, and Rep...
...Whether the ultimate goal—defeating the Shays- Meehan bill—will be achieved won’t be known for a few weeks, as a vote isn’t expected until early August...
...But even if the bill passes the House, Republicans aren’t much concerned...
...Trent Lott, the Senate Republican leader, is strongly opposed to the reforms outlined by Shays and Meehan, and would block a vote on them, just as he did earlier this year...
...Simple enough: On July 14, an amendment banning non-citizens from contributing to a federal campaign passed the House...
...And on Capitol Hill, House Republicans can hardly contain their glee over the decision of House Democrats to spend the past few months wrangling over campaign-finance reform when they could have used the time to address issues on which GOP members feel vulnerable, such as health care...
...Republican opponents of Shays, like Tom DeLay, the House whip, concluded the best strategy was to give the reformers exactly what they wanted...
...Shays said it was “everything we wanted and hoped for...
...Shays and others said what they really wanted was a “fair and open” debate...
...Earlier this year, they were refusing to give floor time to a campaign-reform bill sponsored by Rep...
...Remember what a big year that was for Democrats...
...Indeed, Ryan says he’d be happy to have his Democratic opponent make the issue the centerpiece of her campaign...
...But DeLay, who opposed the amendment, wanted to highlight the Democratic mindset on campaign reform...
...They’ve been hoping to score points by criticizing the GOP for blocking reforms, but it now looks like there’s little political advantage to be had...
...House speaker Newt Gingrich endorsed DeLay’s idea, as did Gerry Solomon, who as chairman of the Rules Committee had final say over whether an open rule would be permitted...
...The bad news was that this ranked dead last when compared with the intensity of feelings about the other 15 issues...
...Meehan believes the GOP’s obstinacy could be one of the vehicles Democrats ride to winning back the House...
...For Republicans, the beauty of the open rule was simple...
Vol. 3 • July 1998 • No. 44
