Conservatives Fall Short in Quest to Defeat 527 Bill

House Approves New Restrictions on Political Speech

House conservatives have been fighting a losing battle in Congress lately. Last month they narrowly lost a vote to offset a $91.8-billion spending measure with budget cuts. They bucked their party leaders again last week in a losing effort, voting against the so-called 527 Reform Act.

Eighteen House Republicans (see box), led by conservative Republican Study Committee Chairman Mike Pence (Ind.), came up short, 218 to 209, when six Democrats broke ranks with their party to vote for the bill. (A link to the full rollcall is on HumanEventsOnline.com)

Relatively unknown before the 2004 presidential campaign, 527s became a popular vehicle for voter mobilization and advertising. On the left, MoveOn.org used donations from liberal billionaires George Soros and Peter Lewis to attack President Bush, and on the right, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth used its millions to criticize Sen. John Kerry (D.-Mass.).

"Some in Washington want to rein in 527s with greater government control and regulation, and that is certainly their right and a path that is consistent with the letter and spirit of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act," Pence said after the vote. "However, I believe instead of greater government control of political speech, more freedom is the answer and that is why I could not support this bill."

Pence had planned to offer his own less-restrictive 527 bill, co-sponsored by Rep. Albert Wynn (D.-Md.), but he was thwarted when the House Rules Committee allowed no amendments.

The 527 Reform Act (HR 513) requires 527 groups to abide by the same donation limits as other political committees: $25,000 per year for voter mobilization and $5,000 per year for federal elections. Money is now expected to flow to 501(c)4 organizations, which have fewer disclosure requirements.

The bill faced widespread opposition from conservative groups, especially the Club for Growth and the American Conservative Union, which made an unusual announcement in advance of the House vote that it would score the bill as part of its annual congressional ratings.

But the House GOP leaders still rallied around HR 513 as part of their reform agenda. It still must win passage in the Senate.

Despite the setback, conservatives noted that if it were not for six Democrats, they would have won. The same could be said last month when 29 House conservatives demanded the $91.8-billion supplemental spending bill be offset. But 22 Democrats voted with Republicans, sparing Majority Leader John Boehner (Ohio) embarrassment on his first big vote.

Copyright Human Events Publishing, Inc. Apr 10, 2006
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved