Though his fundraising prowess and mastery of the current campaign finance system has helped him to his powerful position, Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) realizes the existing campaign finance system no longer works to the greatest benefit. From his vantage point, the current system’s drawbacks outweigh its advantages. His ability to legislate – to produce the policies he most desires – is hamstrung by the steadily increasing demands that fundraising places upon the members of his caucus. These beliefs led him to become the lead Senate sponsor of the Fair Elections Now Act (S. 752), which would institute public financing for congressional races.

Fair Elections would allow qualified candidates for Congress to run a viable campaign using a small public grant, coupled with donations of $100 or less that would be matched on a four-to-one basis, up to a limit. He has championed the legislation in the Senate chamber since its re-introduction in March of 2008. He has worked to build support and make the case that the measure is the only solution that will allow lawmakers to create and pass legislation that benefits constituents, not big money interests, who too often kill or water down needed reforms.

Sen. Durbin mused at a recent forum that past policy feats likely would not have been possible had they come under consideration in the current campaign system:

“…I don’t think LBJ (President Lyndon Baines Johnson), with all of his prowess politically, could pass Medicare under the current circumstances, what we’re up against in terms of the political system and campaign system in America today. It was just starting in his era. Today, it is full blown in terms of the millions of dollars that are being drilled into this process to stop reform.”

Not only does the influx of millions of dollars in campaign contributions and lobbying expenses affect the process of passing meaningful reforms, but also the sheer amount of time that must go into attending fundraisers and dialing for dollars takes away from lawmakers’ ability to craft and eventually pass important legislation.

“I can’t tell you how many hours we spend as Senators speaking with one another about how we’re going to raise money and how much time we’re raising money - the so-called power hour -- when a senator sits in front of the telephone at the respective campaign headquarters trying to raise money…it becomes a preoccupation in terms of what we’re doing,” said Senator Durbin at a Center for American Progress forum in December 2009.

Sen. Durbin, along with the other Senate co-sponsors, as well as the nearly 150 House co-sponsors (to date), have come to understand that the time spent raising money would much better serve the American people if it was used to tackle the problems we face as a country.

Sen. Durbin recently struck a nerve inside the beltway early in the debate over Wall Street reform when he famously said, “frankly, the banks own the place.” This ruffled the feathers of many of his colleagues, but nobody could deny the validity of the claim. The debates on financial regulation reform, energy policy, and health care reform have shown over and over the power that big money interests, and the time spent courting their dollars, have over the way our democracy functions. These issues have also shone a light on the need to change the way we fund elections, and has helped garner a great deal of attention to Fair Elections and momentum for passage has never been greater.

These debates, coupled with the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC, which now allows corporations to spend freely in our elections, has led to a backlash against big money special interests and the sway they hold over our elected officials. At the time of the Citizens United decision, Sen. Durbin issued the following statement:

“Today’s decision by the Supreme Court is a triumph for special interest and judicial activism at its worst. Overturning the ban on corporate spending on political campaigns opens the floodgates for the corrupting influence and the dominant hand of special interest groups.”
 
“At a time when the American people have ample reason to be wary of powerful corporations focused on a selfish agenda, this decision will only fuel feelings of cynicism and distrust in our system. The power of large corporations and special interests is already immense; this decision will put overwhelming pressure on elected officials to bend even more in the direction of Big Business.”
 
“We must now create a system where we finance campaigns fairly. It is the only way we can ensure that our candidates and elected officials focus on addressing the nation’s problems and not on the limited interests of the wealthy and powerful few.”

The Fair Elections Now Act offers a clear and bold alternative to what seems to be our corporate-run democracy. With strong leadership from Sen. Durbin, the opportunity to fundamentally change the way our democracy functions is closer than ever.

Sen. Durbin first embraced Fair Elections in 2006 and thanks in large part to his leadership, the legislation has come a very long way. And as the bill moves forward with his stewardship, a Congress that functions with the best interest of constituents in mind, and not wealthy donors and special interests, has never been closer to reality.