BCT Editorial – 1/5/06

This page was last updated on January 7, 2006.

Go for more; Editorial; Beaver County Times; January 5, 2006.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject editorial.

“Gov. Ed Rendell will propose limits on giving money to state-level campaigns in Pennsylvania, capping what a person or group can give to a single candidate as well as the cumulative amount during a campaign cycle.

“The governor said he’ll unveil his proposal later this month. He did say, though, that the only way to make these limits work is if candidates get free time to advertise on television, which is something that only Congress can mandate.

“However, other reforms are needed that don’t necessitate approval of Congress, ones that Rendell and the Legislature could address if they really wanted to.”

[RWC] Though I can’t be certain, it appears the editorial to this point supports the Rendell proposals infringing on freedom of speech. Wasn’t it in yesterday’s editorial that the Times correctly opposed infringing on freedom of speech?

I support no limits but I believe all contributions must be reported in a timely manner. I also believe the contribution records should be available to the public via easy-to-query Internet websites. As long as we have detailed records about who gave how much to whom, I believe in no limits. Anytime you try to make an action illegal, all you do is drive the action underground and out of sight.

“They could adopt legislation that requires lobbyists to report how and on whom they lavish their money. Pennsylvania is the only state in the nation without such a law. Or, they could enact laws regarding access to public records and open meetings that promote democracy, not official secrecy. The state’s laws in these areas are pathetically weak.”

[RWC] The author got it right for a change.

“Them [sic] state has a myriad of opportunities for good government reforms. What it doesn’t have are elected officials who want to cede any power to the people.”