An Even More Dysfunctional F.E.C. about to be scrutinized by Pres. Obama

[groovedaddy]

Hardly known for vigor or vigilance, the Federal Election Commission is about to undergo well-deserved scrutiny from President-elect Barack Obama’s administration. The regulator of federal campaigns has a long record of creating loopholes and looking the other way when it comes to policing easy political money.

Mr. Obama has assigned a study of the panel’s insular, fitful operations. We hope it’s in preparation for a complete overhaul aimed at truly independent regulation in the public interest — not more catering to wheel-horse appointees from both parties scheming to circumvent, not uphold, the election laws.

The six-member commission has become nigh unto dysfunctional as the three Republican appointees vote together to block any effort to penalize campaign abusers, producing 3-to-3 standoffs on enforcement.

The three naysayers rejected a conciliation agreement, worked out by commission staffers, settling obvious violations despite the fact that the accused offender — a political offshoot of the United States Chamber of Commerce — accepted the agreement and its penalties. The three also forced a retreat from penalizing a worker who admitted to tapping $65,000 in campaign money for his private accounts. And a candidate who already paid a fine for wholesale filing failures found his check returned after another 3-to-3 deadlock, according to the independent BNA Money and Politics newsletter.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/20/opinion/20tue3.html?th&emc=th

[Vincardog]

1. 'bout fucking time

[Old and In the Way]

2. Excellent news.

For democracy to work, our elections must be free of partisan influence. Now that the shoe is on the other foot, I'm betting the typical Republican voter is finally in agreement.

[tbyg52]

3. Hooray!

:applause:

[formercia]

4. "a political offshoot of the United States Chamber of Commerce"

Surprise, surprise.

The FEC is probably being run by the CofC.