Senate voted to raise political contributions

WASHINGTON - The Senate voted overwhelmingly yesterday to raise the limits on contributions to candidates and political parties, hoping to strike a balance on campaign finance legislation one day after moving to flush millions of dollars out of the nation's political system.

The 84-16 vote on a hastily crafted compromise cleared the latest - but not the last - hurdle blocking passage of legislation pressed by Sen. John McCain and his allies to curtail the influence of big money in politics.

"Money is not evil in and of itself," said Sen. Fred Thompson, R-Tenn., shortly before the Senate agreed to increase donation limits enacted in the wake of the Watergate scandal a quarter-century ago.

Donors would be permitted to give $2,000 a year each to candidates of their choice, and $37,500 overall to candidates and political parties for use in direct campaign expenses. These limits would rise with inflation in the future.

The current limits are $1,000 and $25,000.

Sen. Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, the leading Democratic supporter of the bill, emerged to say he would give his support reluctantly to the increases. "We have to make this move," he said, or else risk the unraveling of a coalition that has been painstakingly put together in nearly two weeks of floor debate.

Even with the compromise, other obstacles remain, including a thorny question of whether the Supreme Court should be directed to consider the measure one provision at a time, or render a verdict on its constitutionality as a whole. Lawmakers on all sides of the bill have raised questions about the constitutionality of a variety of its provisions, and the importance of the issue was reinforced during the day when the Southeastern Legal Foundation announced plans to file suit challenging the bill if it becomes law.

In addition, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has not yet agreed to set a time for a vote on final passage, raising the threat, at least, that he or others might attempt to mount a late filibuster against a measure he has long opposed.

The overall legislation would ban so-called soft money, the unlimited donations that individuals, unions and corporations make to the political parties, and the Senate signaled support for passage of that provision on Tuesday on a vote of 60-40. Together the two parties raised $480 million in such donations in the election cycle that ended last November.