On Free Speech, Is John McCain's Motto "Do As ISay, Not As I Do"?(campaign finance reform bill)

WASHINGTON (February 6) -- As the new Congress gets underway, powerful members of Congress have introduced new "campaign finance reform" bills that contain multiple provisions to restrict the ability of advocacy groups such as NRLC to communicate with the public about the actions of public officials on legislation. The restrictions include pre-election restrictions on broadcast "issue ads," and other restrictions that apply year-round to both print and broadcast communications. The bills also restrict the ability of groups such as NRLC to directly lobby elected officials regarding pending legislation.

On January 22, Senators John McCain (R-Az.) and Russell Feingold (D-Wi.) introduced the latest version of their omnibus "reform" bill. Like earlier versions, it contains multiple restrictions on free speech about politicians. NRLC is preparing a legal analysis of the bill, which when completed will be posted on the NRLC web site at www.nrlc.org under "Federal Legislation: Free Speech and Campaign Finance Reform." That site already contains extensive critiques of earlier versions of the bill, which are largely applicable to the new bill.

The Senate is scheduled to take up the McCain-Feingold bill in the last half of March. (See Action Alert on McCain-Feingold bill, back cover.)

On January 31, Reps. Chris Shays (R-Ct.) and Marty Meehan (D-Mass.) reintroduced a bill (HR 380) very similar to the Shays-Meehan bill that passed the House on September 14, 1999, over NRLC's opposition. Critiques of the 1999 Shays-Meehan bill also are available on the NRLC web site, and an updated analysis of the new bill will be posted when it is available.

For the benefit of journalists who cover the "campaign finance reform" issue, NRLC Legislative Director Douglas Johnson has prepared a memorandum titled, "John McCain: Is His Motto `Do As I Say, Not As I Do'?" The memo outlines four areas of divergence between practices that McCain has said are pernicious or corrupting, and what McCain himself actually does or has done in the recent past - - including activities intended to advance the McCain-Feingold bill itself.

What follows is a brief summary of the subjects addressed in Mr. Johnson's memo:

(1) At a January 29 event in Little Rock, sponsored by certain special-interest groups in an unsuccessful attempt to pressure Sen. Tim Hutchinson (R-Ar.) to support the McCain-Feingold bill, McCain spoke indignantly about "anonymous" political attacks during last year's campaign. McCain apparently trusted that journalists would not remind viewers or readers of the most notable example of an anonymous political attack during the 2000 campaign season: the recorded "Catholic Voter Alert" telephone message disseminated by McCain's own campaign, with his approval, prior to the Michigan presidential primary. The script for that "smear" communication (which is reproduced in the memo) contained no identifying information whatever. Moreover, when questioned by journalists, McCain and his staff for days denied any responsibility for the phone campaign.