Word: pacs
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Granted, while Medford is west of Cambridge, it's hardly what Horace Greeley had in mind; and while the Jumbos have yet to lose a game, New England Division three competition is far from the Pac 10 or the Western Athletic Conference...
...PAC is an important means by which corporate America has an impact on our political system. Literally billions of dollars are spent each year to "lobby" legislators in Washington and to influence public opinion across the nation. The political activities of this wealthy sector of the American community--big business--cannot help but have a distorting effect on our democratic process. As Senator Kennedy has explained...
...campaign "reform laws of the 1970s, Congress claimed to be cleaning up politics and removing special interest influence. In some ways, the result has been quite the opposite. With political parties becoming less effective fund raising agents for candidates, and with the $1000 limit on individual contributions, corporate PACs have become a major source of funding in Congressional campaigns. And the room for further growth is tremendous. Two thirds of the 500 largest industrial firms have yet to form a PAC. Business is quickly leaving the once dominant labor union PACs far behind in the campaign contribution game...
What are corporations trying to accomplish with their money? No doubt much of corporate PAC money goes to fund candidates who are pro-business. But the trend in corporate giving seems to be one of buying access to legislators. In 1978, corporate PACs gave more than twice as much money to Democratic incumbents as to Republican challengers. Alarmingly large amounts, according to Congressman Abner Mikva (D-Ill.), go to powerful committee chairmen who are in safe districts and don't really need the money. Senator Russell Long (D-La.) has been quoted as saying that "The distinction between a large...
...Talks in Congress," has analyzed FEC records. Some of its findings would surely cause our Founding Fathers to turn over in their graves. For example, from January 1975 through July 1978, the nineteen members of the House Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions received campaign contributions totaling $343,389 from PACs and individuals associated with financial institutions. No one got less than $1,000. Observes Fred Wertheimer, "PAC money is investment money, and you want to make a smart investment...