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APRIL 3, 2001

By a 59 to 41 vote split largely along party lines, the Senate on Monday approved the first major change in the campaign finance system since the Watergate scandal.

But the real battle over the reform bill introduced by Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) is just beginning. Republican leaders in the House of Representatives, where the GOP is the majority, have promised a fight.

Court challenges to the bill, should it become law, are also looming. The American Conservative Union, a conservative lobbying organization, said the bill was "unconstitutional" and Chairman David Keene called the Senators who voted in its favor "enemies of freedom."

Similar sentiments were expressed by Senator Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky), the bill's leading opponent, who said it was "fatally unconstitutional." He said on the Senate floor: "The underlying theory is that there is too much money in politics, in spite of the fact that last year Americans spent more on potato chips than they did on politics."

For now, though, McCain and his supporters are celebrating yesterday's vote. The bill survived two weeks of debate and withstood a number of changes which would have limited its main goal of banning "soft money" donations, which corporations, labor unions, and wealthy individuals give unregulated and freely to national political parties.

As expected, almost all Democrats voted in favor the bill. Only John Breaux (La.), Fritz Hollings (S.C.) and freshman Ben Nelson (Nebraska) voted against it.

Twelve Republicans voted in favor, including the unexpected Pete Domenici (R-N.M.). Domenici said he supported reform but wanted additional changes, such as limiting soft money fundraising by sources other than political parties.

"This is not a perfect bill by any stretch of the imagination, but I voted to let the legislative process move forward with the expectation that it will be improved," he said.

Of the changes made to the bill, Domenici was responsible for the "millionaires" amendment. Aimed at candidates like freshman Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) who finance their own campaigns with personal money, the amendment increases contribution limits for opponents.

Other major provisions of the bill:

• Bans soft money fundraising by national parties and federal candidates.
• Regulates soft money fundraising by state parties.
• Increases hard money limits as follows: $2,000 to candidates, $5,000 to political action committees (PACs), $10,000 to state and local parties, $25,000 to national parties. Total per election cycle: $75,000.
• Regulates issue advertising (television or radio only) by corporations, labor unions, and organizations.

Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-Colo.), the only American Indian and tribal member in the Senate, voted against the bill.

Get Yesterday's Vote:
Senate Roll Call: Campaign Finance Reform (4/3)

Get McCain's Floor Statement:
McCain Applauds Passage of Campaign Finance Reform Bill (4/2)

Get the Bill:
To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to provide bipartisan Campaign reform (S.27)

Relevant Links:
Guide to Campaign Finance Reform, the Brookings Institution - http://www.brookings.org/gs/cf/debate/debate_hp.htm
Open Secrets, the Center for Responsible Politics - http://www.opensecrets.org

Related Stories:
Campaign reform faces vote today (4/2)
Campaign finance near final vote (3/30)
Hard money donations boosted (3/29)
Senate defeats campaign spending changes (3/28)
Independent political ads would be limited (3/27)
Campaign finance bill amended again (3/22)
'Anti-Cantwell' amendment approved (3/21)
Campaign finance debate begins (3/20)
Senate gears up for historic debate (3/19)