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OFFICE OF
SENATOR WILMAM PROXMIRE
WISCONSIN
FOR RELEASE AFTER 6:30 A.M. THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 1983 FOR PMS
Sen. William Proxmire (D-Wis.) in a statement from his Washington
office Thursday said, "Congressional candidates raised the staggering
sum of $357 million for the 1982 campaign--a 44 percent increase in
just two years over 1980. Campaign financing has become one of
this Nation's fastest growing industries and like all successful
industries it sells a popular product--legislation."
Proxmire is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking, Housing
and Urban Affairs Committee. He won reelection in 1976 and 1982
without accepting any campaign contributions.
"Even though the economy has been at a virtual standstill since
1978-79, money spent to win a seat in Congress soared by 80 percent
over the last four years. Setting aside my race, the average winning
Senate candidate spent over $2 million on his campaign in 1982,
compared to about one-half that amount 4 years ago. If that trend
continues, the average candidate will have to raise over $4 million
to conduct a serious Senate campaign in 1986.
"To a growing extent, this money is coming from political
action committees. In 1982, PACs contributed $83.1 million to
Congressional candidates--up a frightening 144 percent from four
years earlier. These committees are organized to help advance the
interests of groups with common ideological or economic views. They
do not propound the public interest.
"Most of these PACs are run by hard-eyed realists. They know
what they want and how to go about getting it. They are operated
as a business and contributions are an investment. Those investments
are expected to pay a return.
"That need to see a pay-off leads PACs to favor incumbents. In
1982, they contributed $54.8 million to incumbents, only $16.0 million
to challengers, and $12.3 million on open races. Challengers already
have a difficult time overcoming the advantages of incumbency, and
now PAC contributions are yet another hurdle. PACs are helping shut
the doors of Congress to the average citizen.
"The Nation could easily see its first $500 million congressional
election in 1984. This much money could tempt an angel from the
(OVER)
i
Object Description
| Title | Press releases, 1982-1983 |
| Author/Creator | Proxmire, William |
| Description | Sen. Proxmire made very effective use of the media to advance his policy goals. His monthly "Golden Fleece" awards highlighting government spending that he considered wasteful are only the best-known examples. Given here are press releases issued almost weekly by his office during the years shown. They are individually tagged and retrievable by subject or keyword on the Proxmire Collection search page. This file was scanned from microfilm created by the Wisconsin Historical Society in the 1980s. |
| Language | English |
| Decade | 1980-1989 |
| Source | Microfilm P87-2179 |
| Type | Article |
| Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
| Publication Date-Electronic | 2012 |
| Rights | Copyright 2012 by the Wisconsin Historical Society (Madison, Wisconsin) |
| Digital Format | XML |
| Digital Identifier | BPPRPt3 |
| Source Creation Date | 1982-1983 |
Description
| Title | Page 1 |
| Language | English |
| Year | 1983 |
| Month | June |
| Subject | Campaign Funds; PAC (Political Action Committee) |
| Type | Article |
| Publisher-Electronic | Wisconsin Historical Society |
| Publication Date-Electronic | 2012 |
| Rights | Copyright 2012 by the Wisconsin Historical Society (Madison, Wisconsin) |
| Digital Format | JPEG2000 |
| Digital Identifier | BPPR0819 |
| Full Text | OFFICE OF SENATOR WILMAM PROXMIRE WISCONSIN FOR RELEASE AFTER 6:30 A.M. THURSDAY, JUNE 2, 1983 FOR PMS Sen. William Proxmire (D-Wis.) in a statement from his Washington office Thursday said, "Congressional candidates raised the staggering sum of $357 million for the 1982 campaign--a 44 percent increase in just two years over 1980. Campaign financing has become one of this Nation's fastest growing industries and like all successful industries it sells a popular product--legislation." Proxmire is the ranking Democrat on the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. He won reelection in 1976 and 1982 without accepting any campaign contributions. "Even though the economy has been at a virtual standstill since 1978-79, money spent to win a seat in Congress soared by 80 percent over the last four years. Setting aside my race, the average winning Senate candidate spent over $2 million on his campaign in 1982, compared to about one-half that amount 4 years ago. If that trend continues, the average candidate will have to raise over $4 million to conduct a serious Senate campaign in 1986. "To a growing extent, this money is coming from political action committees. In 1982, PACs contributed $83.1 million to Congressional candidates--up a frightening 144 percent from four years earlier. These committees are organized to help advance the interests of groups with common ideological or economic views. They do not propound the public interest. "Most of these PACs are run by hard-eyed realists. They know what they want and how to go about getting it. They are operated as a business and contributions are an investment. Those investments are expected to pay a return. "That need to see a pay-off leads PACs to favor incumbents. In 1982, they contributed $54.8 million to incumbents, only $16.0 million to challengers, and $12.3 million on open races. Challengers already have a difficult time overcoming the advantages of incumbency, and now PAC contributions are yet another hurdle. PACs are helping shut the doors of Congress to the average citizen. "The Nation could easily see its first $500 million congressional election in 1984. This much money could tempt an angel from the (OVER) i |
| Source Creation Date | 1982-1983 |