One reform advocate, Mike McCabe, executive director of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, welcomed the plan. It certainly passes the test of meaningful reform, and it would be a huge step forward. Senator Ellis deserves a lot of credit for being a champion of reform and challenging people in his own party. McCabe said he remained optimistic about campaign finance reform passing the Legislature. Clearly, leadership will cling to the status quo until the very last minute.
People are sick and tired of vending machine politics.
Candidates who agree to the limits could not receive contributions from political action committees. Candidates who do not abide by the limits would be subject to strict reporting guidelines and could not accept contributions within 10 days of the election. Each candidate would receive public funding equal to the amount spent against that candidate by independent groups. Appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on March 28, 2001. Journal Sentinel Inc. All rights reserved.