WASHINGTON -- President George W. Bush put the final touches on campaign finance reform for this year by recently signing the McCain-Feingold-Shays-Meehan Bill into law in the Oval Office before flying off for a series of fund raising events for Republican candidates.
His endorsement of the bill was lukewarm. "I wouldn't have signed it if I was really unhappy with it," Bush told reporters as he toured a firehouse in South Carolina on his fundraising tour. He said in a statement that the bill presents "serious constitutional concerns," most notably its limits on individual contributions to political parties.
None of the bill's sponsors were present for the signing. It was a nonglorious nonevent. Obviously, the president was not thrilled about the law, even though all hands agree that he is its single largest beneficiary. The increase of the contribution limit from $1,000 to $2,000 per person will enable the president to raise twice as much campaign cash from the same number of donors who gave him the record $113 million during his race for the presidency in 2000. I should think he would believe that is fabulous.