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Monday, December 18, 2006

Yates: Limit campaign contributions


After watching a record $2.7 million spent on this fall’s Hamilton County commission race, one state lawmaker had to do something.

State Rep. Tyrone K. Yates, D-Evanston/East Walnut Hills, (pictured) has decided to introduce a bill – by no later than the first quarter of next year – that would limit the amount individuals could give in county-wide elections.

Yates, who represents Ohio’s 33rd District. Admits “it is almost impossible” to take money and power out of the political process, but views his daft bill as a way to make it more fair to all potential candidates.

Yates has a draft of the bill that would limit campaign contributions in county races – where there currently is no limit – to between $2,500 to $10,000 per individual.

Yates’ plan, he added, is to avert the “financial thermonuclear war” that took place this last election when both Commissioner Phil Heimlich and successful challenger David Pepper raised more than $1.3 million – each doubling the previous record for a commission race when Heimlich raised $592,867 to win his 2002 race.

Heimlich relied on a few big-bucks contributors – Carl Lindner, Richard Farmer, Robert Rhein -- for much of his money this time. They contributes tens of thousands at a time.

All but about $500,000 of Pepper’s money came from his family – or his own pocket.
Pepper, who defeated Heimlich 53-47 percent despite being outspent, believes Yates’ proposal is a great idea.

“These races shouldn’t be attracting these kinds of dollars,” Pepper said.

Heimlich is skeptical, saying the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that limits can’t be placed on the amount a candidate can give from his own campaign.

“It won’t work. If you limit contributions,” Heimlich said, “that means people who have vast wealth like my opponent control the process.”

Pepper received about $460,000 from his parents – his father, John Pepper, is the former chairman of Procter & Gamble – and the candidate loaned his campaign $375,000.

He did that because that was the only way to offset Heimlich’s multiple contributions for large dollars from billionaires.

Much of the money paid for television advertising.

“My goal in life is not to enrich television stations,” Pepper said.

In the final few weeks of the campaign, Pepper looked at polling and saw he had the lead, looked at the endorsements and saw he was winning most of them. But when he looked at the finances he saw what he expected would be an onslaught of spending by Heimlich’s camp that could offset the polling and endorsements.

“That was the only way to keep up with (Heimlich),” Pepper said of the money he loaned his campaign and his parents’ contributions.

Heimlich, though, accused Pepper of relying on his parents and family money to win the election – noting that one of the reforms Pepper preached for during the campaign was a limit on contributions.

That’s the point, Pepper countered.

Were there limits on amounts individuals can give, Pepper’s family wouldn’t have been able to give the money it did.

“I raised more money without (family) money than has ever raised before and the truth is that wasn’t even close,” Pepper said.

Pepper admitted he essentially wiped out his personal finances by loaning his campaign $375,000. He hopes to repay that loan from future campaign contributions.

There are limits on city, state, federal and presidential races, Yates noted, so there also should be on countywide races.

“By having campaign limits, we’ll have a more responsible debate (on issues),” Yates said.
Yates’ draft bills calls for the limit to disappear if a candidate announces he will self-fund his campaign.

Heimlich, whose parents gave their son $25,000 in campaign contributions, said it was unfair even his well-to-do family – his father is the noted doctor Henry Heimlich, his mother heir to the Arthur Murray dance estate – couldn’t compete with the Pepper wealth in the race.

“If you put those kinds of limit on it, guys like me don’t have a shot,” Heimlich said.

What it cost
In this year’s race for Hamilton County commissioner, a record $2.7 million was raised by both candidates:
* Incumbent Republican Phil Heimlich -- $1.39 million for 134,595 votes. That’s $10.33 per vote;
* Commissioner-elect David Pepper -- $1.341 million for 151,999 votes. That’s $8.82 per vote.

Read the candidates’ full campaign reports at the Politics Extra blog below.


6 Comments:

at 10:37 PM, December 18, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

We need to reform campain finance nationwide - this is ridiculous.
we have to go to solely publicly financed campaigns - that's the only way

 
at 6:29 AM, December 19, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

David Pepper, Tyrone Yates and I are in agreement on placing limits on political campaigns. They support limits in county-wide elections. I support limits on US Congressional campaigns.

I apologize to all those rich politicians who will have to get out and meet some people instead of buying their way into office. Everybody should have to do like I did and go knock on a few thousand doors.

I'd also like to commend the Hamilton County Democratic Party for choosing to endorse "nobody" during the last primary. We all had to work to win people's hearts and minds the old fashioned way. We had to earn their trust.

The majority of Congressmen are wealthy. Many of the members of Congress have actually no idea about what really goes on in your daily life. They receive "talking points" from their political parties in order to be able to sound like they really understand what is going on in your lives... Politicians in Washington even send this garbage out to candidates during the primary. The whole process is so broken and so unbelievable that people would be incredibly surprised if they saw and knew everything that goes on "behind the scenes". I can give you examples of millionaires who I met during my past campaigns for Congress, who were so far out of touch with ordinary people that they actually asked me my opinion about what to say to certain people at certain times.

I want you to know right now, that if I ever run for US Congress again, I will never cave in to the "special interests". The people of Southern Ohio are my special interest.

I will propose legislation to limit the amount of money that anybody can raise or spend on US Congressional campaigns. America is NOT for sale. At least not the America that I believe in...

But right now, I'm not running for anything. I'm just on the way out the door to go work in healthcare for another day. Making people's lives better is my passion. I work with some of the finest people that you could ever meet. They give of themselves tirelessly every single day to improve the lives of others; that's the number one reason that people go into healthcare.

Again, if I ever am lucky enough to be your next Congressman, I will present a "real" campaign finance reform bill to the US House of Representatives. And if the politicians in Washington bury it in some committee, then I'll just have to take it to the media.

JEAN SCHMIDT, WHAT'S YOUR POSITION ON CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM???

Jim Parker
Former Democratic Candidate for US Congress - 2005 & 2006...
2nd District (Adams, Brown, Clermont, Hamilton, Pike, Scioto and Warren Counties)

See More About JIM PARKER, A Man Who Believes in the People of Southern Ohio

 
at 10:00 AM, December 19, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Heimlich, whose parents gave him $25,000 in campaign contributions, said it was unfair that even his well-to-do family - his father is the noted Dr. Henry Heimlich, his mother heir to the Arthur Murray dance estate - couldn't compete with the Pepper wealth in the race.


9.25.06 - Henry Heimlich made a $12,500 contribution and Jane Heimlich made a $12,500 contribution.

11.16.06 - Henry Heimlich loaned $20,250 and Jane Heimlich loaned $20,250.

Total = $65,500

This took me 10 minutest to figure out and I don't even work this beat.

 
at 10:55 AM, December 19, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

You really gotta feel bad for poor guys like Phil. They really are underdogs.

 
at 2:24 PM, December 19, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tyrone Yates is just jealous because he coundn't raise that munch money in his lifetime !

 
at 4:54 PM, December 19, 2006 Anonymous Anonymous said...

These are auctions not elections. We can no longer allow big money to nullify honest elections. The corporate media outlets like the Enquirer are the big winners every year and the public always loses.

Even limits as high $2,500-10,000 corrupt the process and marginilze the majority of the voting public. Free airtime for candidates on the public airwaves and publicly funded elections are part of the solution.

The argument against limits is that it silences free speech. Money talks and under the current corrupt system the majority of people are silenced. The gate keepers will not be able to keep us silent any longer.

 
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