The latest in this story, from the Daily News' Dave Davies:
Faced with growing opposition, City Councilman Jim Kenney is now considering alternatives to his proposal to suspend campaign contribution limits in the mayor’s race.
Kenney’s bill lifting the contribution limits in races where a self-funded mayoral candidate kicks in $2 million or more has been condemned the Committee of Seventy, the Chamber of Commerce, Philadelphia Forward and a number of city Council candidates.
Kenney said in an interview he’s now drafting a new bill which would mirror the “millionaires exception” to contribution limits found in the McCain-Feingold federal election law.
“The original bill was a starting point for discussion of this phenomenon we’ve never encountered before,” Kenney said in an interview. “There is an inequity here, and if this isn’t an acceptable solution, we’ll look for another one, or we may decide we have to just roll the dice and see if Tom Knox can buy this election.”
Kenney introduced his bill after the Daily News/Keystone poll showed previously-unknown businessman Knox vaulting into second place in the race after $ 2million in TV ad buys.
The McCain-Feingold law provides for higher contribution limits when U.S. House and Senate candidates face self-funded opponents. The amended limits vary between the House and Senate and depend on the level of millionaire spending as well as the fundraising disparities among the candidates.
Depending on the circumstances, contribution limits may be up to six times higher in Senate races and three times higher in House races.
Kenney said hopes to see both his original bill and the new one debated in a public hearing on Valentine’s Day.
And for good measure, Kenney said he plans to introduce a bill for public financing of municipal campaigns, which would apply to future elections.
Comments (9)
I want to commend Councilman Kenney for getting out front of this issue. I actually think his first bill is just fine, and I hope it passes.
The multi-millionaire loop hole must be closed!!!
Posted by Andy Daven | February 5, 2007 4:27 PM
2-5-07
Unfortunately, we do not live in a perfect world. Real finance reform would in some way make the playing field the exact same/level for each candidate. Each of the candidates except for Mr. Knox has different stakeholder groups that want to support them. So far as I can tell Mr. Knox has one stakeholder group, i.e., Mr. Knox. Whatever else he has, he has bought. I support the working men and women of America; not some millionaire who probably is only interested in his ego. If Mr. Brady can get money from my union brothers and sister; God bless him!
M. Braunstein
Posted by M. Braunstein | February 5, 2007 4:39 PM
I have to believe the 2 above posters are joking. I really hope so. Really hope so.
Posted by Patricio | February 6, 2007 3:16 AM
I dont think they are joking at all. I have yet to figure out why people expect voters to be so afraid of a Knox victory. I mean we have to assume the guy actually wants to be mayor if he is willing to waste $10m dollars to win. I find it hard to believe that he is spending all that money just to satisfy his ego.
Posted by sj | February 6, 2007 9:14 AM
I'm not joking at all! Why is it okay to have an exception for multi-millionaires to give 3000% the individual limit to themselves? If the same limit applied to Knox, he'd still be at 1%. He is making a run to buy the election, and has an unfair advantage. Kenney had the courage to step in this debate to try and solve something we all know is wrong!
Posted by Andy Daven | February 6, 2007 9:14 AM
The machine is so scared of losing power - one of their main guys - Fumo is going down. If any of the other cadidates win, it's the end of the Brady/Fumo cabal. What the Brady Bunch is wrong about - I think - is that Knox eats into their "white" support. Such a date way at looking at the electorate. If anything, Knox hurts Nutter and Evan; the three of them are idealogically similar, although Knox would be a horrible Mayor and he's grossly exagerated his record with the Rendell administration (e.g., lies about it).
Posted by Turtle Power | February 6, 2007 8:23 PM
Where I agree with you is eventually, I think Knox will be irrelevant. All people need to do is get to know him.
Posted by Andy Daven | February 7, 2007 12:29 AM
Well - at least we agree on something. That's positive. I do think that the more people get the know Brady, the less they're going to like him as well. Same with Fattah. Nutter and Evans get more likable the more you know about them. Sort of a reasonable conclusion for me to reach when you realize that they've raised a majority the money raised in this raise from a huge number of people.
Posted by Turtle Power | February 7, 2007 6:50 PM
Well Ace, I ve gotten to know Tom and find him to be a "good" man. Money does not necessarily make a person egotistical. If more people could get to know the other candidates it would be a small Philadelphia miracle, i tried and wasn't able to get pass their egos to meet with them personally.
Posted by Ce | February 10, 2007 10:26 PM