PPI’s Executive Director Lindsay M. Lewis argues for a time-out from the nonstop campaign in today’s Politico:
Partisan gridlock is the standard explanation for why Congress gets so little done these days. But there’s another reason for lawmakers’ dwindling productivity: They spend too much of their time asking for money instead of legislating.
While there’s no shortage of ideas for campaign finance reform, many run afoul of Supreme Court rulings that treat political donations as a protected form of free speech. But there’s a simple way to ease the fundraising burden that doesn’t require amending the Constitution or passing new laws: Call a “time-out” on collecting cash in non-campaign years.
Specifically, Congress should amend its ethics rules to require an off-year “fundraising quiet period.” House members would be forbidden to accept campaign donations except during an election year. For senators, the time out would apply through the first four years of each six-year term — leaving the last two years to fundraise.
Read the entire op-ed.
