Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009

Reform effort falls short

We thought the reformers in Springfield would go for broke on campaign finance changes this week. Instead, they settled for half a loaf -- and in doing so, may have made things worse rather than better.

The bill that was approved puts campaign contribution limits on individual candidates, but not leaders and political parties. They are restricted in primaries but can still give unlimited amounts on cash to whomever they choose in a general election.

The coalition behind the legislative, Change Illinois, trumpeted its passage as a victory. But how does this rein in the corrupting influence of money? It just handcuffs individual candidates and makes the people in control of the big money that much more powerful.

The folks at Change Illinois say they pushed House Speaker Mike Madigan and Sen. Leader John Cullerton as far as they thought they could without endangering everything. But they were the ones on the spot. They, along with Gov. Pat Quinn, are the ones who promised serious campaign reform during the veto session. The reformers had all sorts of leverage but didn't use it.

A coalition spokesman said they made it clear to the leaders that this was a step on a long road to reform. That's fine with the leaders. They got what they wanted -- the ability to say they supported reform that the coalition wanted without having to change their ways.

That road to reform? It just got longer.