WASHINGTON, Jan. 24 (UPI) -- Sponsors of the campaign finance reform bill stalled in the House succeeded Thursday in gaining enough signatures on a petition that will force that bill to the House floor over the objections of House GOP leaders.
Reps. Thomas Petri, R-Wis., Charles Bass, R-N.H., Corrine Brown, D-Fla., and Richard Neal, D-Mass., put the last four signatures on the petition to reach the 218 needed and override GOP leaders' objections.
The bill, introduced by Reps. Chris Shays, R-Conn., and Marty Meehan, D-Mass., would ban unregulated "soft money" donations to political parties and closely mimics a bill passed by the Senate in April. Supporters of the measure argue that the explosive reliance on soft money by both parties has eroded public confidence in government and given special interests too much control in Washington.
The signatures come just as Congress started a slate of hearings into Enron's financial collapse, a company marked by prolific donations to both parties and powerful influence inside Washington's corridors of power.
"If Enron isn't a case for campaign finance reform, then I don't know what is," House Minority Leader Dick Gephardt, D-Mo., said.
Success on the petition means that the Shays-Meehan bill will come to the House floor in the coming weeks. Spokesman for House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., predicted "a fair amendment process," as debate on the bill moves forward that will be limited to 11 hours over two days.
White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer signaled that President Bush might not object to a campaign finance reform bill that landed on his desk. "In all cases, the president is committed to having campaign finance reform enacted into law," Fleischer said. Fleischer also said the president's signature would "depend" on the specific contents of the bill.
But Meehan predicted a tough fight on the House floor when the bill arrives there. "When we get to the House floor, there will be poison pill amendments and sham alternatives to grapple with," Meehan said.
