news-record.com

Not everyone wants to clean house in Congress this election. Far from it.

Big money is backing incumbents.

An analysis of campaign finance reports by the watchdog group Democracy North Carolina finds that members of the state's congressional delegation lead their challengers in fundraising by an average margin of five to one.

Much of the bulge comes from political action committees, which are pouring large amounts into the campaign accounts of Democratic and Republican incumbents alike.

This is supposed to be a year of voter dissatisfaction, when no seat in Congress is safe. Most North Carolina members of Congress probably aren't worried. Those who had primary opponents prevailed easily, and now their advantage in dollars means they'll be hard to defeat in November.

"Big money from special interests has become such a dominating force that it distorts the whole democratic process," Bob Hall, director of Democracy North Carolina, said last week.

The North Carolina candidate with the most money, measured by cash on hand as of June 30, is 11th District Democrat Health Shuler with more than $1.4 million. About 57 percent of his total receipts come from political action committees, or PACS. His Republican opponent, Jeff Miller, had $65,000. None of his donations have come from PACS.

Incumbents with Triad-area districts -- Republicans Howard Coble and Virginia Foxx, and Democrats Mel Watt and Brad Miller -- enjoy some of the largest money margins over their opponents. Foxx has raised the most but, unlike Coble, Watt and Miller, most of her receipts have come from individuals rather than PACs.

Hall notes that several North Carolina congressmen support the proposed Fair Elections Now Act, which would provide a public funding option for candidates who limit PAC contributions or large donations from outside their states.

There are problems with this measure, however. Funds would come from a fee on government contractors, which would end up costing taxpayers indirectly; and from a tax applied to money from the sale of broadcast spectrum space. Also, many candidates simply wouldn't meet the qualifying standard of having to raise $50,000 in small donations before receiving public funds. Democrat Sam Turner in the 6th District and Republican Greg Dority in the 12th haven't reached $5,000 yet. The public funding scheme would give some incumbents even more money than they raise on their own, while leaving their challengers with nothing. At least that would dilute the influence of PACs, but it wouldn't make elections more fair.

Voters who want to see incumbents unseated should think about contributing to worthy challengers, who often can't compete without money to get their message out. All voters should pay attention to who's paying for campaigns and make sure representatives serve the people, not wealthy special interests.