Poll: West Virginia Voters Support Public Financing for Court Elections
Monday, 08 March 2010
CHARLESTON, W.VA., March 8, 2010-West Virginia voters support public financing of elections for state Supreme Court justices, expressing deep concern that campaign funders currently can buy unfair influence in the courtroom.
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Culture of Corruption
Wednesday, 07 June 2006
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Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan
On June 7, 2006, CED convened a luncheon forum featuring Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Illinois Comptroller Daniel Hynes. The event was hosted by CED Trustee Ronald Grzywinski, Chairman & President, ShoreBank Corporation, at the Swissôtel and drew a crowd of over 100 business and civic leaders.

Attorney General Madigan acknowledged that the problem of corruption in government couldn't be handled by elected officials alone, and that the business community had a role to play. She asked that business and civic leaders demand accountability and transparency and support regulations that would prevent political fundraisers from being held in the weeks before and after votes on critical legislation.
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CED Highlights Money and Politics at Los Angeles Forum
Tuesday, 06 June 2006
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CED President Charlie Kolb
Partnering with the California Clean Money Campaign (CCMC), CED sponsored a luncheon discussion on money and politics in Beverly Hills, CA. Over 35 business and community leaders joined for the discussion which featured remarks from Charles E.M. Kolb, President, CED; Thomas E. Mann, W. Averell Harriman Chair and Senior Fellow, The Brookings Institution; Robert M. Stern, President, Center for Governmental Studies (CGS); Susan Lerner, Executive Director, CCMC; and Richard Jacobs, Chair, Brave New Films.
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Can Congress Cure Itself
Wednesday, 24 May 2006
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Dr. Jim Thurber moderates the panel discussion
On May 24, 2006, CED hosted Can Congress Cure Itself, a luncheon forum featuring remarks from Dr. Michael Johnston, Charles A. Dana Professor of Political Science & Director, Division of the Social Sciences, Colgate University. Dr. Johnston discussed the findings of his new book, Syndromes of Corruption: Wealth, Power and Democracy. Specifically, he explored various types of corruption in societies and the threat to democracy and economic stability that results. The event took place as part of CED's Annual Meetings at the Waldorf=Astoria Hotel in New York City.
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Congressman Christopher Shays Keynotes Money and Politics Forum
Monday, 24 April 2006
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Congressman Christopher Shays
Over 100 business and civic leaders gathered for a CED luncheon forum featuring Congressman Christopher Shays (R-CT). The forum highlighted the recent successes in campaign finance reform and underscored the need for further action in Washington to create lasting ethics and lobbying reform. Congressman Shays called for Congress to pass meaningful, bipartisan reform legislation.

 

CED President Charles Kolb moderated a panel discussion which included remarks from: Carol Darr, Director, George Washington's Institute for Politics, Democracy & the Internet, Graduate School of Political Management; Richard H. Davis, Managing Partner, Davis Manafort; and Norman J. Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute. The event was hosted by CED Trustee Edward A. Kangas, Retired Chairman & CEO, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. The current climate of corruption in Washington, D.C. and the need for a coordinated call for reform was the theme throughout the speakers' remarks.

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CED Launches Series of Forums to Discuss Money and Politics
Thursday, 16 March 2006
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Panelist Trevor Potter of the Campaign Legal Center
CED hosted a luncheon forum featuring Senator John McCain (R-AZ) to highlight the successes of the reform movement in Washington and to underscore the need for further action. The forum also included a panel discussion which included remarks from Norman J. Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute; Trevor Potter, President and General Counsel, Campaign Legal Center; James A. Thurber, Director, Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University; and Anne Wexler, Chairman of the Executive Committee, Wexler & Walker Public Policy Associates.
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CED Hosts Campaign Finance Reform Forum in San Francisco
Wednesday, 15 February 2006
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CED Trustee Harold Williams with Senator Debra Bowen and CED President Charlie Kolb
With generous support from the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Foundation, CED hosted a campaign finance reform luncheon forum with The Greenlining Institute and the California Clean Money Campaign. Building on momentum achieved when the California Assembly passed legislation calling for publicly financed state and legislative campaigns, leaders of the state and national campaign finance reform debate met for this discussion on changing the way political campaigns are being financed.
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Lobbying Reform Summit
Thursday, 26 January 2006
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Senator Barack Obama (D-IL)
CED and the Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies (CCPS) at American University hosted a lobbying reform summit that brought together experts to discuss the important lobbying reforms needed to clean up Washington.

The forum featured keynote remarks from Senator Barack Obama (D-IL). A distinguished panel of experts also provided comments. The panel included Martin Frost, former Congressman from Texas and Fellow, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars; Lee Hamilton, former Congressman from Indiana and President and Director, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars; Trevor Potter, President and General Counsel, The Campaign Legal Center: James A. Thurber, Director, Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies; Fred Wertheimer, President, Democracy 21; and Joseph Minarik, Senior Vice President and Director of Research at CED.

 
Building on Reform
Tuesday, 05 April 2005
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CED released a new policy statement concerning campaign finance, Building on Reform: A Business Proposal to Strengthen Election Finance. Senator John McCain (R-AZ) delivered the keynote address, which focused on the dangerous new 527 loophole and the ineffectiveness of the Federal Elections Commission (FEC) at enforcing the law. He went on to say: "By calling for the regulation of 527s and an overhaul of the FEC, CED is courageously leading the business community in speaking out against the corrupting influence of big money in federal elections, as it did during the fight to pass BCRA."

After working hard to help pass the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA), CED was happy to see the 2004 election cycle produce millions of new small donors, filling the coffers of candidates and parties without the appearance of corruption or influence peddling that only a few years earlier had dominated the process.

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Campaign Finance Reform Press Conference
Sunday, 11 February 2001
In February 2001, endorsers of the CED campaign finance reform plan held a press conference at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. to emphasize the business community's overwhelmingly support of reform and to call on Congress to make reform a reality. Those attending included Senator John McCain (R-AZ), Rep. Jim Turner (R-TX), Warren Buffett, Chairman of the Board of Berkshire Hathaway, Investing in the People's Business subcommittee co-chairs, Edward Kangas and George Rupp, and CED President Charles Kolb.

Read the press release.
 


CED, the Committee for Economic Development is an independent, nonpartisan organization for business and education leaders dedicated to policy research on the major economic and social issues of our time and the implementation of its recommendations by the public and private sectors.