McCain-Feingold: well intentioned, unconstitutional

Tom Blackburn, whose opinions I usually respect and agree with, gets this one wrong.

Here's why, from an article way back in 2001:

Let us be honest. The reason so many pundits support McCain-Feingold is because their influence over the process will be magnified. Media conglomerates are one big business that isn't silenced by the McCain-Feingold regime. But this doesn't contribute to objectivity or free discourse.

James Madison believed that majorities composed of temporary coalitions of factions were likely to be less injurious to individual liberty than permanent majorities. Such "majorities of minorities" may seem sloppy to proponents of direct democracy but it has worked rather well in preserving our vast republic. If he were alive today, he might notice the hypocrisy of those who criticize the role of privately contributed money in politics but remain silent about (or are participants in) the promised disbursement of trillions of dollars of taxpayer money in order to win votes.

Which brings us to McCain-Feingold's fatal flaw: Yes, it is bad to live in a society where the wealthy can purchase special favors from the government. But perhaps the proper solution is not to limit their ability to make such purchases, but to reign in the government's abilities to perform favors for the chosen few. If government were less far-reaching, people would invest less money influencing its direction. Contributors may not be seeking control of the government as much as they are seeking protection from it; they would not feel the need to pay tribute to officials in a more limited, civic-minded government.

I'm glad the New Media allows me to freely respond to Mr. Blackburn's column, even though I'm not employed by a conglomerate media group like Cox, which pays and widely distributes Mr. Blackburn's columns weekly.