House to Debate Rep. Tom Cole’s Bill on Presidential Campaign Fund

I am no expert on this law but it is my understanding that it funds Presidential election campaigns in primary and general elections by matching private donations up to a hard cap limit in an effort to slow the growth of huge money in such campaigns but is not funded with any taxpayer dollars. Rather, it is funded by voluntary donations of $1 by people filing their tax returns and checking a box to allow $1 of any refund they might have coming to go to this fund. So why kill it off? First, Republicans get donations in the millions of dollars and not $1 here and there so they figure the fund only helps Dems, and #2, who could be so pathetic as to need this funding mechanism after the Republican Supreme Ct of the US found that the founding fathers would have wanted them to equate money with speech, as in 1st Amendment free speech! Oh those strict constructionists who are so against judicial activism unless it has to do with getting Republicans elected! So Cole wants to kill it purely for political reasons since it doesn’t save one dollar for the US or taxpayers. Guess who was the most recent Prez candidate to take this money? John McCain!!

In 2008 President Obama raised 700 million dollars in his campaign and plans to raise over a billion this time. The funds in 2008 were donated in 25-50 dollars increments. This president doesn’t need these funds because he raises record amounts so eliminating this fund would only hurt Republicans because Republicans have a hard time raising money.