Campaign finance worksheet.docx



Lefkowitz -- GOVTname _________________Campaign Finance & the Role of Money in ElectionsRECENT EXAMPLES OF CAMPAIGN FUNDRAISINGIn the 2008 U.S. Congressional elections, winners elected to the House of Representatives spent an average of more than $1 million on their campaigns. Winning senators spent an average of more than $8.5 million, while the average losing senatorial candidate spent more than $4 million. Those numbers do not begin to approach the level of spending for presidential campaigns; in 2008, Barack Obama spent nearly $730 million in his successful bid for the presidency, while John McCain spent about $333 million on his losing campaign.WHAT CONCLUSIONS CAN YOU DRAW ABOUT THE ROLE OF MONEY IN ELECTIONS?“CAMPAIGN FINANCE” IS VERY CONTROVERSIAL BECAUSE SOME ARGUE THAT MONEY PLAYS TOO LARGE A ROLE IN ELECTIONS. WHAT DO YOU THINK? THE EXERCISE BELOW WILL HELP YOU TO DEVELOP YOUR OPINION, AS WELL AS INTRODUCE TO YOU THE RANGE OF PROBLEMS WITHIN “CAMPAIGN FINANCE”.For each of the questions below, you must figure out at least one ‘pro’ argument and one ‘con’ argument for the question.should candidates be able to collect as much money as they can from donors, with no limit?YESNOshould a person be able to give as much money to a campaign as they want to, with no limit?YESNOshould a person giving money to a campaign be able to do it anonymously?YESNOshould corporations and other large organizations be allowed to donate to candidates’ campaigns?YESNOshould taxpayers and the government pay for campaigns, as long as candidates agree to not collect any other donations and as long as all candidates get the same amount of money?YESNOUNDERSTANDING THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE RULESGiven that there has been a growing concern about the impact of money in politics, what kinds of rules do you think the government has set for campaign finance?According to this diagram, what do campaigns have in common with 527/501c/SuperPACs?Why might someone not want to donate directly to a candidate’s campaign? In other words, why do you think these “outside groups” (527/501c/SuperPACs) exist at all?From the FEC website:What does the FEC do?The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency established in 1975 to administer and enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). That statute limits the sources and amounts of the contributions used to finance federal elections, requires public disclosure of campaign finance information and--in tandem with the Primary Matching Payment Act and the Presidential Election Campaign Fund Act--provides for the public funding of Presidential elections.1. What kinds of rules does the Federal Election Commission have for campaign finance? What information do you think must be disclosed (revealed publicly) about every donation?CAMPAIGN FINANCE REGULATIONS & LOOPHOLESUse the reading packet to answer these questions:What is the difference between hard and soft money?What was the soft money loophole of the 1980s and 1990s?What did the BCRA ban? What loophole remained?Why do you think Congress made it illegal for any corporation to donate to candidates?In what ways are PACs like a “legal loophole”?What are the two kinds of PACs? How are they similar/different?Do PACs give money to candidates to spend or do they spend the money themselves to aid candidates?Do Super PACs give money to candidates to spend or do they spend the money themselves to aid candidates?How might money that is spent by Super PACs / 527s / 501c organizations help a candidate’s campaign -- even though it can’t be given directly to the candidate and their campaign? Why do you think Obama declined the “public money”?TYPES OF DONATIONSUse the reading packet to complete the table:donor > type of political orgis there a limit on the amount of a donation?is there a requirement to disclose the identity of the donor?individuals > campaignparties > campaignPACs > campaignanyone > 527anyone > Super PACsanyone > 501cREFLECTIONWhich regulations seem most necessary to you?What do you think needs more strict regulations?Which regulations seem most unnecessary to you?If you could change one thing, what would you change? ................
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