Wednesday, July 12, 2006

Incumbent protection bill signed by governor


Governor Matt Blunt just issued a press release noting he has signed HB 1900, what I refer to as the incumbent protection bill.
This bill includes a provision added by Sen. Tim Green, D-St. Louis, which eliminates all campaign contribution limits, In other words, it's open season for the special interests that are already dominating our state government.
The reasoning offered by supporters of this provision is that ways have been found to circumvent the spending limits enacted by Missourians 12 years ago. Primarily, this has involved the legal laundering of money between various legislative district committees.
Instead of closing these loopholes and keeping in place the reform Missouri voters obviously wanted, our elected representatives removed all limits. This is some reform bill,
Another provision, which has largely gone overlooked, is just as dangerous. Naturally, we don't want our elected officials spending time raising money while the General Assembly is in session, but I am willing to accept that over the alternative that the new law puts in place.
Soliciting campaign contributions is now illegal during the time the legislature is in session. Of course, this gives incumbents on both sides of the aisle a major advantage since they already have the machinery in place and have easy access to the special interests through the lobbyists who represent those interests. Challengers will be restricted from raising funds during five months out of the year, increasing the already incredible advantage held by incumbents in state political contests.
Once the legislative session is over, the floodgates will open, but the donations are largely going to the incumbents. True, it is always that way, but this misguided (or cunningly calculated) provision, will widen the gap even more.
Among the other provisions of this bill, according to the news release (with my comments following in parentheses):

-Requires out-of-state travel by lawmakers paid for by lobbyists to be pre-approved by the accounts committee (Why not ban it altogether? That would help restore faith in the system.)
-Prohibits felons from running for office (How many of these have there been? Judging from what we are hearing in the news nowadays, more and more elected officials wait until they reach office before they become felons.)
-Holds those who file frivolous complaints with the state ethics commission accountable (This sounds like a way to intimidate people. While I am sure some frivolous complaints are made, I doubt if that is the reason behind this provision.)

Perhaps most galling is the idea being spouted by supporters of this bill that opening the system to more scrutiny will solve all problems. Consider this passage from the governor's news release:

"The changes I am enacting today will shed light on the true sources of campaign contributions and the actions of lobbyists who work to shape public policy. This is a strong step in the right direction that empowers the people with greater information about the men and women who seek to serve them in public office."


Putting all of this information on the Missouri Ethics Commission website is something that should be done. No argument about that. That being said, it's a giant leap from posting information to dealing with the problems caused by the influence of lobbyists and special interests in our state.

For that to make a difference, you have to assume that someone is going to carefully examine those records. With few exceptions, it is just not happening. Most citizens do not have the time or the inclination to pore through documents on a state website. That job should be done by the media. Unfortunately, the media has failed when it comes to closely examining, on a regular basis, the campaign finances of elected officials and the gifts they receive from lobbyists.
Examination of campaign finances has normally been a superficial look at who has raised the most money. While that is an important story, it is more important to see where the money comes from and the affect is has on legislation. The media fails in that aspect, as well.
So essentially, this new law, which has been touted as a major step to reform Missouri politics, is a joke.
Consider the last two paragraphs in the governor's news release:

Blunt’s signing of HB 1900 follows the strict code of conduct policy he issued for his own office in May prohibiting his staff from accepting gifts from lobbyists. No previous Missouri governor implemented a lobbyist gift ban and Blunt’s office believes it is the first to produce an employee manual setting out the policies and procedures under which the governor’s office operates. The manual and the gift ban are consistent with Blunt’s campaign promise to provide more trust and accountability in state government.


Anyone expecting a renaissance in open government is in for a major disappointment.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

This bill contains a number of offensive provisions that will make our already toubled political system even worse. The arrogance the bill demostrates is truly remarkable. Apparantly the Repubilcan majority in the General Assembly knows more then over 70% of Missour voters. That is the percent that voted in favor of contribution limits in 1994. Hopefully around 70% of the voters will hold them accountable for this outrage in November.

Unknown said...

I just shake my head in disgust. They may be Republicans but they are not true conservatives. I wonder if any of these so called Republicans remember the Contract with America Republican party that was going to clean up politics and get rid of all the scandals. These guys have just found new ways to make it worse.

Anonymous said...

The abolishment of the campaign contributions was added to the bill by a Democrat and supported almost by the entire Missouri Senate. I question why this bill is being pinned strictly to Republicans when it is evident the Democrats had a hand in crafting it.

Anonymous said...

The Republicans make up the overwhelming majority in the General Assembly and particularly the Senate. Most Democrat Senators and Representtives opposed it. All Senate Republicans and most House members voted for it. Our Democrat Attorney General urged the Governor to veto the bill as did several other prominant democrats. The Republican Governor signed the bill. Gee I wonder why Republicans are getting most the blame?

Anonymous said...

5 Democratic Senators are not "most Democratic Senators." Most Democrats actually voted for the bill.

Anonymous said...

O.K.
How do we get the roll call on this vote and see exactly who voted for it?

Anonymous said...

Clearing all the retoric surrounding this issue, one is left with an important fact identified by Randy himself.
Most citizens and journalists are not interested in this topic. In Randy's report it is simply stated that most citizens " do not have the time or inclination" to vist a state website and educate themselves on this topic. After often reminding us of his attention to the topic, most citizens are not sturred by the facts of the issue. Sturred by the retoric, yes. Most comments here indicate a dark brooding cloud over all politics and all politicians, yet most commentators here I suspect have rarely been to a city council meeting or called their own selectman.
Complain all day long. Its a great sport in America. We all complain about something,coaching for example;the price of:_______;
TV programing. Most citizens and journalists I believe simply enjoy the process of complaining.

Anonymous said...

Sen. Callahan, Days, Green, Kennedy and Barnitz voted for the bill. Every Republican voted for it. That would be half of the Democratic contingent in the Senate.

Randy said...

The most important thing about this law is not which Democrats or Republicans voted for it (though that should be kept in mind). It's the content of the law and the message it is sending that Missouri politicians are for sale to the highest bidder. I firmly believe nearly all of our elected officials are there to serve their constituents in the best way they can, but when we put into place a system that is guaranteed to increase the temptation to blur ethical boundaries, it won't be long before there are no ethical boundaries left to blur.

Anonymous said...

So of the 88 yes and 67 no votes in the House, does anyone know the political make up of the voters?