Buying the vote : a history of campaign finance reform / Robert E. Mutch.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Mutch, Robert E.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Campaign funds--United States--History.

Campaign funds.

Campaign funds--Law and legislation--United States--History.

Campaign funds--Law and legislation.

History.

United States.

Physical Description:

xii, 363 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Oxford University Press, [2014]

Summary:

"Campaign finance reform has always been motivated by a definition of democracy that does not count corporations as citizens and holds that self-government works best by reducing political inequality. In the early years of the twentieth century, Congress recognized the strength of these principles by prohibiting corporations from making campaign contributions, passing a disclosure law, and setting limits on campaign expenditures. These reforms were not controversial at the time, but conservative opposition to them appeared in the 1970s. That opposition was well represented in the Supreme Court, which has rolled back reform by granting First Amendment rights to corporations and declaring the goal of reducing political inequality to be unconstitutional. Buying the Vote analyzes the rise and decline of campaign finance reform by tracking changes in the way presidential campaigns have been funded since the late nineteenth century, and changes in the debate over how to reform fundraising practices. A close examination of major Supreme Court decisions shows how the Court has fashioned a new and profoundly inegalitarian redefinition of American democracy"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

From Plutocrats to Populists: 1884-1900

The 1904 Election and the First Scandals: 1904-1907

The Beginning of Reform: 1905-1907

The Triumph of Reform: 1908-1911

Big Business Money Remains Dominant: 1912-1928

Organized Labor Becomes Active: 1932-1948

The Revival of Reform: 1952-1972

From Buckley to Austin: 1976-1990

From Reform to Reaction: 1996-Present.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 315-345) and index.

ISBN:

0199340005

9780199340002

9780199340019

0199340013

9780199340026

0199340021

OCLC:

862780838

Publisher Number:

99959302517