WASHINGTON — Rebel lawmakers in the House of Representatives forced the Republican leadership Thursday to let them vote on a bill to overhaul the nation’s campaign finance laws, emboldened by the Enron scandal and the harsh spotlight it is shining on money in politics.
House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., who has blocked efforts to bring the issue to a vote since last summer, backed down Thursday after the measure’s advocates won the final signatures they needed to put a majority of lawmakers behind a petition demanding action.
Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., provided the 218th signature, giving supporters a majority of the 435-seat House. In all, 197 Democrats signed the petition, joined by 20 Republicans and one independent.
That sets the stage for a House vote this year on a bill that would make the most sweeping changes to campaign laws since the post-Watergate revisions of the mid-1970s. The House bill is co-sponsored by Reps. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., and Martin Meehan, D-Mass. Its biggest change would be to ban “soft money,” the five- and six-figure donations to the two major political parties, as distinct from contributions to candidates’ campaigns.
A similar bill passed the Senate last April.
If the House passes the legislation, the new rules could go into effect in time for November’s congressional elections, when partisan control of each closely divided chamber of Congress is up for grabs.
House proponents credited the Enron scandal with helping them secure the final signature.
“It shows a majority of the House is aware of the corrupting influence of big money in politics,” Shays said. “The growing Enron scandal, and the enormous sums of money the company contributed to gain influence, underscores this point.”
Before it went bankrupt Dec. 2, Enron was a major player in the Washington money game. It spent nearly $6 million on politicians and both political parties over the past 10 years, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a research center that tracks money in politics.
© 2002, Knight Ridder/Tribune
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