My former colleague, Meredith McGehee, has a scathing, incisive piece on the pathetic Federal Election Commission in Roll Call today ($$ - but an excerpt here from Josh Z). In it she says:
But the stalemate is a symptom of the underlying problem intentionally built into the statute. The FEC was designed for deadlock.
Who was a key player in the design of the FEC 30+ years ago? A US Rep long forgotten to history, but a fearsome power in the House at the time. Wayne Hays chaired the House Administration Committee and the DCCC, wielding power over everything from campaign laws to campaign money and office furniture -- and abusing his power to a degree that would make Tom Delay envious.
When Hays did not succeed in blocking reform legislation entirely, he made sure that the FEC would not be able to enforce the law.
He was brought down in a scandal - hiring a "secretary", Elizabeth Ray, who later said, "I can't type, I can't file, I can't even answer the phone." But part of his legacy, the FEC, lives on.
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