Clean Elections Coast to Coast?

As has been reported Here and Here Clean elections are being talked about in Washington State. Apparently they will also be discussed in the other Washington this year.

According to a post over at TPM Muckraker.com, Illinois Senator Dick Durbin, the number two Democrat in the US Senate, has indicated that he will be bringing a bill to floor of that body that will address Public Financing of Federal Campaigns. The author of the TPM piece, Paul Kiel, writes:

"On the Senate floor today, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), while speaking about the Dems' ethics package, said that the next logical step is public financing, and that he would be introducing such a bill in a matter of weeks. (We're still trying to get a record of Durbin's exact remarks.)"

While it is far too early to expect anything this "radical" out of this congress (check out This and This), the fact that someone in Durbin's position is willing to even bring it up gives us hope that we can make real progress at the state level.

Peace,
Chad (The Left) Shue