Vero Possumus

Barack Obama’s new “presidential” seal declares “Vero Possumus.” As pointed out here, those familiar with possums would translate that as “"It's the truth, I'm lying like a possum!" It’s more like “laying,” but free speech is the road kill.

Last week I presented agreeing opinions from leading campaign law attorneys, Left and Right, on the troubles with their being overly complex, out of date, and futile (here and here).

The leading “progressive” campaign law attorney, Bob Bauer, now serves Barack Obama. Bauer presents a useful typography re: critics of campaign finance law. Bauer, also, points out there are “new approaches.” But, he fails to mention what they might be, and his link to a conference last year only says, “The details of a fresh program were left to another day, but the presenters were prepared to consider how resources for political action and mobilization might be supplied, not restricted.”

Obama has a good advocate in that respect, Obama’s online fundraising outstripping former efforts.

One wouldn’t expect Bauer to, then, reflect that since all the law’s barriers to free speech haven’t stopped candidates from tapping seamy sources, that only leaves the independent citizen at a speech disadvantage since they can’t afford to deal with the complexities.

Two critics from the Right, however, are more forthcoming. Former Federal Election Commission chair Brad Smith points out, more even-handedly,

… both major party candidates seem determined to make one thing clear - this election is not about you, your hopes, your ambitions, your desires for government policy. No, this election is all about them, and their plans for you….

But what Obama actually said was that he believes that campaign contributions are corrupting, except that his donors, and he, are somehow different - uncorruptable, unlike the rest of you slobs out there. Moreover, Obama wanted to take tax money, it appears, but not if the rest of us were still allowed to speak. …

McCain's camp made equally clear the contempt it has for voter participation in campaigns: “[Senator McCain] wishes that 527s did not exist on either side,” said McCain strategist Steve Schmidt. "[McCain] abhors these groups,” added John Weaver, the Arizona senator’s former chief strategist. Damn citizens, talking about things the candidates don't want to talk about!

What kind of campaign is it, when the two leading candidates seem to be working tirelessly to keep the public on the sidelines? What does it mean when the two leading candidates think that the voices of citizens interfere with their campaigns - their plans to tell America what is good for them?

Remember that this fall - this election isn't about you - it's about them. And remember that when someone - McCain, Obama, Democracy 21, Common Cause, whomever - says we need more "campaign finance reform." It isn't about making you heard, it's about making them heard.

Ed Morrissey also calls a possum a possum:

Now Obama wants to generate massive amounts of private donations from supporters of the public-financing system in order to gain a money advantage over an opponent who remains in the public financing system that Obama lionized. The only “independence” this represents is an independence of Obama from his principles, and that applies to anyone who donates to this effort while supporting public financing.

We, the people, are treated as dumb possums, free speech road kill. The rising and overwhelming hypocrisy of campaign finance law advocates during this campaign is another reason so many who are serious about public policy are turned off, while screeds from yahoos and apologetics from hacks seem to fill and contaminate public discourse.