Philip Shabecoff Quotes

All contributions by corporations to any political committee or for any political purpose should be forbidden by law.

The ability of big money to shape perceptions - where you have four anti-climate lobbyists for every single member of the House and Senate - is a big factor.

Campaign finance reform is vital. It is impossible for us to win, especially in committees, because we can never outbid the opposition.

Soft money is the silent killer of health care reform and other legislation we need.

Not since the gilded age has our politics been opened so wide to corporate contribution and donations from secret sources.

Anyone who has been around Washington politics long enough can't avoid this truism: Election-year money is like a rushing river that invariably finds cracks in any dam the reformers erect.

Now, the typical way you make good things happen in Washington is you find a bunch of wealthy companies who agree with you.

At a time when special interest money is being showered on legislators in Washington, grassroots donors offer members of Congress a refreshing independence. The $25 and $50 donor is not looking for special favors. He or she is simply expecting their Congressman to go do the right thing.

I'll spend whatever it takes to get my message out and to be competitive with these career politicians. I'm not going to take a penny of special interest money.

It's time to bring tough medicine to Washington. No longer will policy be set by K Street, it will be dictated by Main Street.

I think we have to look at the whole way campaigns are financed. The No. 1 problem is PAC and special-interest money.

But they are not going to take on Big Oil because Big Oil is very generous at campaign time, and this is all about the elections. They want to pretend that they are doing something meaningful.

There can only be democracy when money is not allowed to be spent in Politics.

I also do not like the idea of soft money, these issue ads - people don't know where the money is coming from, millions and millions of dollars outside of the control of a candidate - there's no accountability.

I can tell you that too much money is corrupting American politics. Don't blame the American public. The U.S. Supreme Court has a lot to answer for, because it has made it impossible for Congress to reduce the corrupting influence of money on American political life.

The people of this country, not special interest big money, should be the source of all political power.

We need a complete ban on soft money, which is sort of an enveloping problem, and a ceiling on the amount of money that can be spent on a given race.

The AFL-CIO giving money to the Democratic Party has all the appearances of dinosaurs mating.

People who think the might in Washington can be persuaded, or corrupted if you will, by anything less than voters just doesn’t understand what its about and never will. They don’t know what Washington juice is made of.

It is very important at this juncture to eliminate the influence of big money and special interests in politics.

Public [campaign] financing and free television time are the things that will diminish the high influence that money has on politics.

While American democracy is imperfect, few outside the majority of this court would have thought its flaws included a dearth of corporate money in politics.

The only true solution to the campaign money problem is a return to a proper constitutional government that does not control the economy. Big government and big campaign money go hand-in-hand.

The men and women who now run for Congress have special features. Most of them are much wealthier than their constituents. Surprisingly few have strong policy interests or experience. Most are willing to spend a day or two or three each week asking strangers for money on the telephone, a demeaning but obligatory exercise. Most have internalized an ethical code that allows them to solicit campaign contributions from people directly affected by legislation they vote on. This is not rare or even unusual — it’s standard

Corporations write the legislation. They vote on the legislation. And they give advice on how to pass their bills.