Senate Proceeding on Sep 22nd, 2010 :: 8:41:15 to 8:54:05
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8:41:15 to 8:41:35( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: leaving our voters without any knowledge of who is behind the ads that they're hearing. to me this lack of accountability and civility and literally accuracy in political campaigns is absolutely unacceptable. and i'm of the view that we

8:41:15 to 8:54:05( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Ron Wyden

8:41:36 to 8:41:56( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: ought to be asking here in the united states senate, is this really the best we can do to ensure accountability and openness in american politics? mr. president, i -- i think the answer to that is it's a no brainer. there ought to be basic

8:41:57 to 8:42:18( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: disclosure of who's behind all these ads that are flooding the airwaves, and that is what is behind the disclose legislation, the bill that has been brought before the united states senate to ensure that it's possible for americans at a time when there is intense interest in american

8:42:19 to 8:42:40( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: politics to know who is sponsoring all of these commercials that are rushing at the american people pell mel over the airwaves. what is striking, mr. president, is how stark the inequities in all this are. mr. president, when i am particularly trouble -- what i am particularly troubled about

8:42:41 to 8:43:03( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: is as a result of the supreme court decision, it is possible today for a foreign interest with no vote here in the united states to have a more substantial voice in our elections this fall than a hard-working american taxpayer.

8:43:04 to 8:43:24( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: now, when you break that down, you really get how outlandish this supreme court, you know, decision is. mr. president, let me just repeat that. foreign interests through a subsidiary with no vote here in

8:43:25 to 8:43:48( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: the united states will have a louder voice in the state of alaska, in the state of oregon than any of the hard-working taxpayers that we are honored to represent here in the united states senate. i think that indicates that the campaign finance system is way out of whack. this supreme court decision, in

8:43:49 to 8:44:10( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: my view, has literally blown the hinges off the doors of our democracy and what's needed is legislation like the disclose act to ensure accountability, civility, and accuracy in political campaigns. my view is, mr. president, that the lack of that kind of

8:44:11 to 8:44:32( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: accountability creates not only confusion but even resentment among voters. the reason i know that is that the situation that the country finds itself in now is very similar to what i saw when i first ran for the united states

8:44:33 to 8:44:53( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: senate in 1996 against the man who eventually became my colleague and good friend here in the united states senate, gordon smith. that was the only race in the united states of america at that time, mr. president, the winner of 1996, and attack ads were

8:44:54 to 8:45:16( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: being run by all sides left and right. senator smith and i literally had no idea who was behind a lot of these attack ads. and we made the judgment that while policy differences and personal criticisms are certainly a fair and legitimate

8:45:17 to 8:45:38( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: part of a political campaign, what is not acceptable is the situation our country finds itself in once again and that is huge numbers of ads being run where nobody could figure out who is behind some of the attacks and attacks that were

8:45:39 to 8:46:00( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: pretty vicious and certainly high decibel. so i came to the united states senate in the winter of 1996, mr. president, and i vowed to try to make some changes. i vowed to work with colleagues of both political parties to bring transparency and

8:46:01 to 8:46:21( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: accountability to campaign advertising. and i had the good fortune, mr. president, to find a terrific partner in this effort with our colleague from maine, senator susan collins. and as part of the mccain-feingold bipartisan campaign reform act of 2002, senator collins and i were able

8:46:22 to 8:46:42( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: to win passage of an amendment which has come to be known as the "stand by your ad disclosure requirement." not only have we all seen these ads, everyone who -- who has run

8:46:43 to 8:47:05( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: to serve in this distinguished chamber has recorded them it's real simple. "i'm mark beggish, and i approved this message." "i'm ron wyden, and i approved this message." it's not a hard thing to do. it comes about as a result of the fact that a colleague on the other side of the aisle, senator collins, joined me in this

8:47:06 to 8:47:29( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: effort that i felt especially passionately about after that senate special election in the winter of 1996. that simple disclosure requirement gives voters very important information about who is behind a political ad. now, i'm of the view that disclosure shouldn't be required

8:47:30 to 8:47:50( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: just for candidates but for anyone: interest groups, corporations, anyone that seeks to communicate a political message. unfortunately, after the citizens united ruling, there are a variety of these interests that are now free to spend unlimited amounts of money on political ads without voters

8:47:51 to 8:48:11( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: knowing who is paying for the ads. that, in my view, is dangerous for democracy, it's wrong, and it needs to be stopped. now, the "stand by your ad" provision of the disclose act would require the top official,

8:48:12 to 8:48:33( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: the c.e.o. or a top official from a company, a union or any organization paying for a political advertisement to take responsibility for the ad. now, the disclose act can't prevent the formation of

8:48:34 to 8:48:54( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: misleading front, you know, organizations, but another provision would require disclosure of the top five funders to allow voters to know who is behind the ad. i'm of the view, mr. president, that companies, unions, other organizations ought to be held

8:48:55 to 8:49:15( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: to the same standards of transparency and account act in accountability in their advertising as political candidates or political action committees. it is, in one description, all about sunshine, mr. president. sunshine is the best disinfectant.

8:49:16 to 8:49:36( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: the disclosure requirements in this legislation are going to give voters more information and help them understand who is paying for these political ads. so, mr. president, i continue, as president of the senate -- as the president of the senate

8:49:37 to 8:49:59( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: knows, to continue to do everything i can to work here in the senate in a bipartisan fashion. i'm very pleased to see my distinguished colleague in the he has joined me with senator gregg and a number of colleagues on both sides of the aisle in what is the first bipartisan tax

8:50:00 to 8:50:20( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: reform legislation in a quarter century. and it picks up on another bipartisan model, legislation advanced by former president reagan, bill bradley, dan rest rostenkowski and others.

8:50:21 to 8:50:41( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: a big day is coming up and that's tomorrow, where chairman baucus is going to lead us into the first debate in a long time about tax reform, and i very much look forward to working with chairman baucus and his leadership on this issue. and i see my good friend, my colleague from the senate

8:50:42 to 8:51:03( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: finance committee, senator grassley, and if we're going to duplicate that important tax reform work of 1986, it's going to be chairman baucus, senator grassley, senator hatch, the leaders of our committee taking us forward in a bipartisan way so the distinguished senator

8:51:04 to 8:51:24( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: from alaska and i and others, more junior members, to work with our colleagues and make some history and fix the american tax system, radically simplify it. but to do that, we're going to have to work in a bipartisan way. and i come to the floor to say

8:51:25 to 8:51:46( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: once again that i'm very hopeful that the disclose legislation, which provides an opportunity for transparency and accountability in campaign finance, can also become a bipartisan cause. there's absolutely nothing partisan about the question of

8:51:47 to 8:52:07( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: making sure that a political, you know, advertisement that is offered in america is one where the american people know who's behind it. that's not a partisan, you know, issue. and as my friend from alaska knows, it certainly isn't a partisan issue to take this

8:52:08 to 8:52:28( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: unbelievable mess of a tax code that runs page after page after page, thousands of words and simplify it to a one-page form, a one-page 1040 form. that's not partisan work. nor should disclosing campaign

8:52:29 to 8:52:49( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: finance advertisements be partisan either. so i ask, in wrapping up, mr. president, on this question of election reform, colleagues, look at the present, you know, system, where there is no accountability, where people don't know who's behind these

8:52:50 to 8:53:10( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: advertisements, and ask, is this really the best we can do? i think the answer is obviously no. i think the answer is instead to say that companies and unions and other organizations ought to be held to the same standard of honesty and integrity as

8:53:11 to 8:53:31( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: political candidates are required to do so -- as political candidates are required to do under the legislation that senator collins and i authored as part of mccain-feingold. the fact is, this senate can do better in election reform. i urge my colleagues to work

8:53:32 to 8:53:52( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: together to bring transparency and accountability to american elections and pass the disclose act. i yield the floor. the presiding officer: the

8:53:53 to 8:54:05( Edit History Discussion )

Ron Wyden: senator from mr. grassley: thank you, mr. president. as a parent and grandparent,