rssSenate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act
Wednesday, September 22, 2010 at 12:21 pm
- 37 Comments
This morning’s Senate session was devoted to a debate surrounding the DISCLOSE Act, which Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has indicated will likely be put to a vote sometime tomorrow.
Reid and Sen. Richard Durbin (D-Ill.), the Democratic Whip, spent the majority of their time ripping the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision and reminding Republicans that, once upon a time, they too supported increased transparency and disclosure of campaign spending as an alternative to strict limits on total dollar amounts. Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) continued to claim that Democrats are raising the issue at at time when they should be focused on jobs and the economy — and that the bill is an attempt to rig the electoral system to their advantage.
Reid began things by surveying the current election spending landscape. “Nameless, faceless individuals are spending huge amounts of money – corporate money and other money — for which there is certainly no transparency whatsoever,” he said. “I repeat, no transparency. That’s what the debate’s about today. It is important the American people know how outrageous the Supreme Court’s decision was.”
Durbin, for his part, turned a portion of his speech into a trivia game of sorts, asking listeners to guess the senator who made the following comment. ”What we ought to have is disclosure. I think groups should have the right to run those ads but they ought to be disclosed and they ought to be accurate, end of quote. Who said that?” Durban asked the Senate. “The Senator from Kentucky who has just come to the floor — the minority leader — in the context of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance bill in 2002.”
The Democratic Whip also went on to quote Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) – “I don’t like it when a large source of money is out there funding ads and is unaccountable. To the extent we can I tend to favor disclosure” — and Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) – “I think the system needs more transparency, so people can more easily reach their own conclusions” — in an apparent attempt to publicly shame Republicans for their change of hearts.
Neither Democrat made mention of the Republican Senators from Maine — Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins — and their previous championing of campaign finance measures, however. As Senators who might conceivably still vote for the measure, Snowe and Collins were clearly deemed off-limits for such rhetorical attacks.
McConnell, meanwhile, spent little time criticizing the specifics of the bill, instead trying to tie the Democrats’ decision to revive the DISCLOSE Act to other efforts in the Senate this week surrounding Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the DREAM Act, grouping them all together as an attempt to play politics before the election. “This is a bill that’s back on the floor no other reason than our friends on the other side have decided that this week is ‘politics only week’ in the Senate,” he claimed. “That’s all this is: pure politics.”
The Minority Leader also coined a new name for the bill — “an incumbency protection act for Democrats in Congress” — and argued that, “now, after spending the last year and a half enacting policies Americans don’t like, they want to prevent their opponents from criticizing what they’ve done…. They’re trying to rig the system to their advantage.”
Both parties, in a sense, are engaged in a game of chicken on the DISCLOSE Act. Democrats think the disclosure of political spending is a political winner and a no-brainer for most Americans, so on the campaign trail they’ll be happy to highlight Republican obstructionism if McConnell and his compatriots once again block a vote tomorrow. Republicans, for their part, are gambling that they can convince the public that the bill favors unions and other special interests partial to Democrats, weaving the measure into a tapestry of right-wing election paranoia that stretches back to ACORN and now The New Black Panther Party, chalking it up as once last ditch attempt by Democrats to steal the elections.
Follow Jesse Zwick on Twitter37 Comments
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 12:25 pm
[...] View full post on The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 12:49 pm
[...] reading here: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act – The Washington Independent Posted in Top Stories, World Tags: democrats, exchange-barbs, flint-journal, leader-harry, [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 1:00 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE ActThe Washington IndependentThis morning's Senate session was devoted to a debate surrounding the DISCLOSE Act, which Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has indicated will likely be put to a vote sometime tomorrow. Reid and Sen. …Why Democrats are pushing a series of bills doomed to failChristian Science MonitorSenate Republicans hold up Dream Act for children of immigrantsWashington Post41 Days to Decide: Hold Off on Campaign Finance Vote … Until After FundraiserFOXNewsThe New American -The Flint Journal – MLive.com -GovExec.comall 2,193 news articles » No TweetBacks yet. (Be the first to Tweet this post) « Court affirms overturning Fla. gay adoption ban – The Associated Press Terror threat against America diversifying, security officials say – CNN International » [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 1:06 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 1:35 pm
[...] interia@firma.interia.pl (INTERIA.PL) posted by in Bez kategorii and have No Comments [...]
Trackback posted September 22, 2010 @ 1:43 pm
Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act…
I found your entry interesting do I’ve added a Trackback to it on my weblog :)…
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 2:22 pm
[...] the rest here: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act – The Washington Independent This entry was posted in Google News and tagged bills-doomed, companies, democrats, [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 2:48 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The pedagogue … [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 3:17 pm
[...] here: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act – The Washington Independent Bookmark [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 3:39 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 4:00 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 4:21 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The pedagogue … [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 5:08 pm
[...] Read more here: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act – The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted September 22, 2010 @ 5:11 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Comment posted September 22, 2010 @ 6:36 pm
What a joke. The Rep don't want disclosure now that the supremes have come down against the American people? What a joke. Shame on you Republicans. You will lose your seats this election cycle. Wake up America. Boot the Republicans or forever bow to their rich corporate controllers.
Comment posted September 22, 2010 @ 6:45 pm
The left is waking up! All of a sudden the Democrats aren't afraid to fight anymore! Get ready for November!
Comment posted September 22, 2010 @ 7:57 pm
If we don't know who's paying for those ads, how can we be sure it's not illegals? Or Muslims? Repubs ought to be the first to yell for as much disclosure as possible :)
Pingback posted September 23, 2010 @ 2:56 am
[...] Washington Independent: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs over DISCLOSE Act This morning’s Senate session was devoted to a debate surrounding the DISCLOSE Act, which Senate [...]
Pingback posted September 23, 2010 @ 6:55 am
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 23, 2010 @ 2:44 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 23, 2010 @ 11:44 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Comment posted September 23, 2010 @ 10:54 pm
This bill would have excluded unions from the regulations. Companies getting Tarp money, companies with 20% or more foreign workers could not even contribute at all. Small contributors donating at least $600 would have to abide by all the red tape this bill mandates the same as do large corporations. The TV requiirements for CEO and the top 5 donors to appear on the ad would make it impossible to run ads because ad time would be taken up by the length of the disclosure statement. In addition, there are concerns about the revealing of donors to support or oppose controversial issues and the potential that they could be made targets of violent reprisals. This is a bad bill aimed at a real issue..campaign finance reform. While the goal is meritous, the approach merely is an attack on free speech.
Pingback posted September 23, 2010 @ 11:58 pm
[...] Read More… "Reid calls Gillibrand 'the hottest member'" and related posts ( )"President Ahmedinejad Threatens US With War 'Without Boundaries'" and related posts ( )"Stop the illegal alien student bailout now: DREAM Act Senate phone list" and related posts ( )"The DREAM Act Comes to a Head in the Senate" and related posts ( )"Garrett set to leave Parliament" and related posts ( )"Military Personnel: DREAM Act Makes Sense in Defense Bill" and related posts ( )"Military Personnel: DREAM Act Makes Sense in Defense Bill" and related posts ( )"Garrett set to leave Parliament" and related posts ( )"Is the Food Safety Bill Dead? Not Unless We Let it Die" and related posts ( )"5 Actions You Can Take for the DREAM Act Now" and related posts ( ) [...]
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 5:42 am
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 6:45 am
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 7:11 am
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Anne Freeman, Cary D Conover, Cary D Conover, Cary D Conover, Cary D Conover and others. Cary D Conover said: Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act: By Jesse Zwick 9/22/10 12:21 PM This morning's Se… http://tinyurl.com/2595y8w #HARRYREID [...]
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 7:46 am
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Comment posted September 24, 2010 @ 7:04 am
Vabelle…you are right, how would we know who's paying for the ads……..The criminals at SEIU or Acorn that have tried to keep everyone else's contributions public and theirs secret… I get it, you make a great point!
Comment posted September 24, 2010 @ 7:15 am
You are a little late…..the left has tried to hijack our country, bypassing the law, the constitution and even common sense, which isn't too common anymore…. I suggest you read the disclosure act, why are Unions not having to report their contributions? Maybe it is because the left has pandered to the unions for decades, to get their votes, taking over our health care system, car companies and the firing of the president of a private company. Yes, that is against the law. Go back to sleep, your point is hollow…be sure to sleep with your hand out.
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 11:00 am
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 24, 2010 @ 6:47 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Pingback posted September 25, 2010 @ 6:20 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE Act « The Washington … [...]
Comment posted October 1, 2010 @ 4:05 am
USA on an H1N1 visa aleady can sponsor their SAME SEX PARTERS for a visa to accompany them. A right we grant to foreigners in the USA, but deny to our own citizens. How loony is that?
Pingback posted October 15, 2010 @ 8:48 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE ActThe Washington IndependentThis morning's Senate session was devoted to a debate surrounding the DISCLOSE Act, which Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has indicated will likely be put to a vote sometime tomorrow. Reid and Sen. …Why Democrats are pushing a series of bills doomed to failChristian Science MonitorDemocrats Push Measure With Tax Breaks for Companies Hiring US WorkersBloombergSenate Republicans hold up Dream Act for children of immigrantsWashington PostFeet in Two Worlds -Stars and Stripes -FOXNewsall 2,161 news articles » [...]
Pingback posted December 8, 2010 @ 9:04 pm
[...] Senate Leaders Exchange Barbs Over DISCLOSE ActThe Washington IndependentThis morning's Senate session was devoted to a debate surrounding the DISCLOSE Act, which Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has indicated will likely be put to a vote sometime tomorrow. Reid and Sen. …Why Democrats are pushing a series of bills doomed to failChristian Science MonitorSenate Republicans hold up Dream Act for children of immigrantsWashington Post41 Days to Decide: Hold Off on Campaign Finance Vote … Until After FundraiserFOXNewsThe New American -The Flint Journal – MLive.com -GovExec.comall 2,193 news articles » [...]
Trackback posted March 24, 2011 @ 4:57 pm
Better website?…
Hey this is a real cool website…
Trackback posted April 29, 2011 @ 5:07 am
Hey {this is a|this can be a|it is a} {real|actual} cool {website|web site}…
Hey I found this web site to be actually fascinating! Bookmarked!…
RSS feed for comments on this post.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.
