The campaign finance system is corrupt. Spending is out of control, and there are various loopholes infederal campaign finance law. Money buys access and influence, which effectively causes the majority of Americans to have no real capacity toinfluence public policy. State and federal legislation is needed to fightcorruption and unjust influence, to ensure the public's right to know where acandidate's money comes from, to enable all candidates to competeequitably in elections, and to allow maximum citizen participation in thepolitical process. Rock the Vote believes that the McCain-FeingoldCampaign Finance Reform Bill, in its

Consumer safety is commonly ignored because of special interest industries. Higher prices are put upon us at the cash register every time we buy something from a company that funds campaigns. Taxes are high because of corporate welfare. Reform is needed to save Americans from this kind of treatment from the big businesses. Opponents of Campaign finance reform have many reasons that they feel reform is bad.Most of these arguments boil down to; contributions are an expression of freedom of speech, and reform would not help as illegal contributions take place now and would only be increased with more laws. The voices of those who fund advertisements that do not go on campaign reports are those of a small minority. These voices are being heard above all the voices of the greater majority of people who cannot afford to have their voices heard. Letting one persons opinion be louder than another goes against the ideas of equality for all, infringing upon the rights of others. If refo!

current state, should be the first piece oflegislation signed into law in 2001. Bolder approaches could include: reducingthe duration of political campaigns; requiring television and radio stations toair campaign advertising free of charge as a condition for maintaining theirbroadcast licenses; barring campaign advertising from the airwavesaltogether; or placing strict limits on the amounts of money that can be spentby candidates and any and all of their supporters. Rock the Vote supportspassing comprehensive legislation for meaningful campaign finance reform.

What We Don't Know About Campaign Finance Does Hurt Us. "No matter what your social issue, if you want to solve it get the money out of politics. Only then will lawmakers vote for their people rather than their pocketbooks."states Jack E. Lohman. (CNN.com 2001) Money corrupts politics, and when contributions are being made to candidates it is not in the best interest of the American people. Campaign Finance is out of control in today's political races. Candidates are taking money from wherever and whoever they can get it. Soft money is flowing through elections without care or caution. People who make these contributions do not share the views of the average citizen, so politicians end up representing the wrong people. Money decides races, sometimes leaving the better man but lighter spender out of a position. Candidates make decisions based on what will help them financially that what is better for the people. Contributions by industry are made not in the interest of the people, sometimes hurting them in ways they don't even know. No matter what the opposition may say campaign finance reform is needed urgently to keep our democracy as our founders intended it. People and corporations that make the largest donations to campaigns do not share views with the general population. Politicians will listen to those who give them money so that they can depend on that money being there again when it is time for reelection. Yet individual donors making a $200 dollar or more contribution make up only .33% of the population. This extremely small percentage of mostly wealthy individuals gain the power to influence politicians to their liking. The idea that these people should have power to affect government more than those with less money goes against the concept of equality for all, which is what made this country great. People who make large donations do not share the same views on most issues as the general population. Robert L. Borosage and Ray Teixeira report that while 53 percent of voters want stricter regulations on businesses and corporations, to give workers a fair salary and working conditions, 58 percent of campaign donors want to see less control over the businesses and corporations of America.(Jackson 1997) Donors also want less government spending with lower taxes, while the majority of citizens want a larger, more powerful government. A very tiny part of our population is giving money to ca

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