Feingold-McCain:Replace FEC

Senators Feingold and McCain have teamed up to introduce S.1648 that replaces the 6-member partisan Federal Election Commission with a 3-member Federal Election Administration.

Most of us are not aware that partisan divisiveness has stalled all efforts by the FEC. Both senators …

said in a statement that the agency is “mired in anti-enforcement gridlock. The president must nominate new commissioners with a demonstrated commitment to the existence and enforcement of the campaign finance laws.”

I have not yet read the bill but something seems amiss. While I understand the need for an odd-numbered review panel, I cannot imagine this as becoming anything other than a partisan-centered board of review without seriously determining the origination of the three members.

The measure would replace the current six member bipartisan FEC with a three member agency. The bill is the latest version of a similar proposal which was first introduced in 2003, but no congressional action has ever taken place. The chairman of the entity would have a longer term of ten years, while the other two members would serve six year terms.

In addition, the commissioners must have a background in law enforcement, and can not have been an elected official or candidate for public office within the past four years. Former FEC commissioners are disqualified if they served on the FEC while term limits were imposed, which began in 1997.

 The right choice would be to create a new Supreme Court appointment of three judges to oversee the FEA. I might make the terms  10 years and a  staggered 8 years respectively above. 

The gridlock in the FEC has been  a problem. 

The FEC, which is divided evenly among Republican and Democratic appointees, has long been derided as feckless by campaign finance advocates and spent a large part of 2008 unable to make decisions because it lacked a quorum. Now with a full contingent, the panel has frequently deadlocked in 3 to 3 decisions, most of which have resulted in favorable outcomes for groups or individuals accused of wrongdoing under McCain-Feingold and other campaign finance laws. The panel is unable to enforce fines or other penalties without a majority vote.

In a typical case, GOP members refused to accept a settlement agreement between FEC staff and the November Fund, a group formed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that was accused of improper expenditures during the 2004 elections. In another case, the FEC returned a penalty check sent by a failed Democratic congressional candidate because Republican members refused to approve the enforcement action.

McCain and Feingold are digging in their heels. They announced this week they are opposing the appointment of Democratic Union lawyer John Sullivan to the  FEC until President Obama also makes appointments for two other open seats.

Should we support this effort to change the FEC or should we stay with the current gridlock?

Share:

Related Articles