The RNC Attack on McCain-Feingold—in Association with Mr. Bopp

     Jim Bopp has made his name outside the of the Republican Party inner circle , concentrating his representations on third party "independent" groups bidding to pull free of McCain-Feingold.  Now he is on the attack for the Republican National Committee, at the same time that he continues the fight for the "groups."  The RNC is now, too, a "group" in revolt:  it wants out of the law sponsored by its just defeated nominee and signed into law by its incumbent President and party leader.  It has reached out to Bopp and Bopp has delivered the ambitious, frontal challenge that has characterized all of his wars on McCain-Feingold.

Directions for Presidential Public Financing Reform

     Fred Werthheimer's piece on the reform of the public financing system goes directly to the key requirements of modernization.  There is acceptance that the current system is not "viable," and the problem is traced to the dated, unrealistic spending limits and inadequate public resources.  Wertheimer proposes new, larger limits, a 4:1 match, and a recognition of the power of small donor Internet fundraising, this last component to be expressed in a spending limit exemption for contributions raised in amounts of $200 or less.

A Further Note on "Appearances" in Election Administration Reform

     Chris Elmendorf and I had an exchange about the goal of strengthening "public confidence" in any election law reform.  It seemed that chasing this ghost, as a primary objective, would lead quickly nowhere, and that election reform would produce confidence if confidence was earned--by performance. So far the term "confidence" has shown up to ill effect in the Supreme Court's jurisprudence: it is the easy way out in empowering election officials to adopt "anti-fraud" measures in the absence of any evidence that fraud occurs.  But Elmendorf makes the point that the objective of higher public confidence should not be discounted altogether, especially in encouraging the losing side to accept the results. 

Hybrid Ads and Public Financing Reform

    Reading Jeanne Cummings' report in Politico on pending initiatives to "save campaign finance," one notes the reference to provisions to close out certain issues—some would say, "loopholes"— in the administration of a publicly financed spending limit.  Cummings refers to advertising budgets shared by the candidates and the parties, and she must mean "hybrid ads," the cost of which are split between the Presidential candidate and the party on the basis of the benefit to the party of including in the communication a "generic" promotional reference to party candidates as a class.  The candidate pays the candidate share and the party its own, each one having derived value from the joint communication venture.  For the candidate, this is money saved; and for the party, it money well spent, fruitful for the candidate and the party alike.

Approaches to Reform: Chris Elmendorf on the Problems with the “Federal Fix” Model

     Chris Elmendorf has inaugurated a new series on Rick Hasen’s election law blog, the first expert invited to post on the subject of “Fixing Election Administration.”   This is off to an interesting start: Elmendorf issues a challenge to the preference for “federal fixes” in solving key conflicts, such as in the accomplishment of secure but universally achieved voter registration.  A possibility he urges for consideration is one of encouraging state experimentation with federal grants administered by a nonpartisan federal agency. 

Also...

After this Election Day, Looking to the Next….  11/6/08

Reform—in the Interest of Voters  10/31/08

McCain v. The Next Generation of Reform  10/30/08

The Rokita Standard of Public Service  10/29/08

Understanding the Voters—and Respect for Them  10/28/08

Getting It Wrong on Reform and Its Objectives  10/27/08

Chairman McGahn and the Old College Try  10/23/08

Two Editorial Boards on the Subject of Presidential Campaign Finance  10/22/08

Two from the Times: Reform in the Eye of the Beholder  10/21/08