State needs meaningful campaign finance reform

from Southern Illinoisan, August 30, 2009 Gov. Pat Quinn did the right thing Thursday when he vetoed a bill for campaign finance reform that was more camouflage than reform. Granted, the scene was surreal. Quinn, who once backed the bill, was supported and surrounded by legislative leaders, including the Democrats who sent the bill to Quinn. This time, though, the flip-flop or backtracking was for the good - provided the Legislature can come back with real campaign finance reform. That's because Illinois is the Wild West of campaign finance. Essentially, anyone can give anyone any amount. Report the contribution to the Board of Elections, and it's all kosher. As we have reported before and The Associated Press did last week, the bill was riddled with problems. Republicans and other opponents noted that under the proposed state bill, Illinois candidates could have collected $5,000 from individuals, $10,000 from businesses and associations, and $90,000 from political committees. And they could take in that amount every year, even when there wasn't an election. Critics argued the bill would allow interest groups and political parties to continue to pump big money into campaigns, a situation they say favors incumbents. They're right. As it stands, big donors, the political parties and the legislative leaders dole out the money. It makes you wonder who our legislators work for: the people who fund their campaigns or the people in their districts. Here was Qunin's explanation for his change of course: "I like to listen to people. So, in the course of listening to people in the last few months, many, many people felt that we should go back to the drawing board with some core principles in mind, that we must have limits on campaign money that are real limits, understand the importance of disclosure, openness and fairness and doing things right." The Illinois Campaign for Political Reform and Change Illinois have been two of the big opponents of the sham bill. Cindy Canary, the head of former group, congratulated Quinn on vetoing the bill. She and others pointed out it simply did not fix the deeply flawed system. "What could be braver than listening to the people, coming to the table and saying, 'We hear you, we're going to try to do this differently,'" she said. So, now the ball is back in the Legislature's hands. Not really; it's in ours. Without extreme prodding, we can expect little reform from Springfield. Remember, Quinn and the General Assembly had the gall to get this crummy piece of legislation all the way to the governor's desk before someone came to his senses. They ignored the recommendations of a blue-ribbon reform panel appointed by Quinn and led by Patrick Collins, the former federal prosecutor who bagged former Gov. George Ryan. What we need is common-sense change, including: · Reasonable limits on individual and political action contributions to candidates and parties. · Limits on fund transfers among PACs. · An aggregate limit on the amount of money a donor can give to PACs during one election cycle. · A prohibition or strict limitation of corporate and union treasury dollars for contributions. As simple as they are, these measures are revolutionary in Illinois. You can back them by calling your legislators, whose numbers are on this page. Or, call Change Illinois toll-free at 800-719-3020. The group will patch you through to your legislators. Let's keep the heat on. Illinois deserves to be more than the butt of corruption jokes.