II In the event of the adoption of the foregoing proposal, it should be provided further that officers and directors of incorporated organizations, and officers, directors and law-breaking members of unincorporated organizations should be held liable for the violation of such law by any incorporated or unincorporated organization with which they are connected, unless it be proved that such violations were without the knowledge or consent of such officers, directors, or members, as the case may be. III In metropolitan centers especially, political contributions have been solicited from various donors, and then a single contribution of the total amount collected was made to the State or National committee in the name of the solicitor and, in some cases, in the name of the State chairman. In such instances it is difficult to find out the names of the original contributors for the purpose of checking on total individual contributions. As is indicated by the committee's summary of party expenditures on page 27 of this report, there is no accounting practice in the United States today which presents so many complexities arising from lack of uniformity and completeness as that of political organizations. The committee therefore recommends that a uniform method and system of accounting be prescribed by law for all national political organizations and for all national political campaigns. IV Charges and countercharges concerning the use of the franking privilege arose by reason of ambiguities in the postal laws. It is not suggested that the privilege of franking, as it now exists, be curtailed, but it is recommended that rights and duties with respect thereto be more clearly defined so that those using the frank will at all times know the true extent of their privilege and that, consequently, there may be a limit within which the exercise of the right is undeniably lawful and beyond criticism, and outside of which it is plainly unlawful and subject to appropriate penalties. This could readily be done by a reconciliation of the several laws now in effect on that subject, and, perhaps, their recodification into a single statute. V Attention has been called to the requirements of the British election laws requiring the local publication of contributions and expenditures and it has been pointed out that similar provisions might be con sidered. Generally, the corrupt-practices acts of the several States require similar publication. It is difficult to conceive how such a measure could be made practical in Presidential and senatorial elections. It might be applied to the election of Representatives in the Congress. But in many States contributions and expenditures of congressional nominees are required to be filed as public records, if not published. The matter is, therefore, presented for such consideration as the subject may deserve. VI It should be made unlawful for any person, corporation, group, organization, association, or for any officer, director, or agent of any corporation, or for any officer, director, or agent of any organization or association, unincorporated, or for any person holding a position, office or employment, under or by the Government of the United States or any bureau, department, or agency thereof, to influence or attempt to influence through fear, intimidation, or coercion, the vote of any person employed by them, or of any person who is dependent on public funds, in connection with an election at which Presidential and Vice Presidential electors, or a Senator or Representative in, or a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, Congress are to be voted for. VII During the campaign complaint was made that certain corporations, forbidden by the law to make contributions, were actually contributing "under the guise" of advertising. If it is desired to completely prohibit advertising on the part of corporations, the same could be done by more clearly defining the word "contributions" in the present Corrupt Practices Act. This subject is presented for such consideration as it may deserve. VIII Generally, attention is called to the following matters: 1. At the present time, reports with respect to elections are filed with the Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate. The reports filed with the Clerk of the House are voluminous and the work of holding them available as public records is heavy. It might be well to designate a Federal office or agency where reports could be filed and kept available for inspection for a period of at least as long as the statute of limitations on elections offenses runs. 2. Political committees might be required to file the names and addresses of the first three officers with the Clerk of the House or other designated Federal agency within a given period after organization. 3. It has been suggested that secretaries of state or other officials designated by law file with the Clerk of the House or other Federal agency a summary of receipts and disbursements of State central political committees after elections. 4. It has been suggested that the law require the appointment of agents to act for each candidate or nominee after the method of the British system. It is doubtful if this would add very much to our present system. IX It has been suggested that private contributions to political campaigns be prohibited entirely and that instead all election expenses should be defrayed from public funds. In applying this plan to nominations, insofar as Senators and Representatives in Congress are concerned, action on the part of the several States would be required. The same would be true with respect to the election of delegates to national conventions for the purpose of nominating Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates. PART 5 SPECIAL SENATE COMMITTEE ΤΟ INVESTIGATE CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURES PRESIDENTIAL, VICE PRESIDENTIAL, AND SENATORIAL CANDIDATES IN 1936 Financial statement (covering period July 1, 1936–Mar. 6, 1937) Appropriation---- Expenses of Senators discharging duties of committee... Office expenses and supplies... Newspaper information and clipping service. Investigators' salaries and expenses. Office personnel... Legal counsel, salary and expenses. Total.. Balance on hand.. Grand total.... OF $30, 000. 00 1, 161. 89 135. 29 88. 52 10, 922. 49 7,799.00 3, 112. 31 23, 219. 50 6, 780. 50 30, 000. 00 Report unanimously approved by committee February 20, 1937. AUGUSTINE LONERGAN, Chairman. SHERMAN MINTON. LEWIS B. SCHWELLENBACH. WARREN R. AUSTIN. LYNN J. FRAZIER. O 139 |