Voters Should Embrace Prop 89

By Brian Carr, Letter to the Editor

Get ready for a barrage of ads opposing Proposition 89, the measure on the November ballot that would create a voluntary system of public funding for campaigns for state offices. The proposition, sponsored by the California Nurses' Association, is based on successful systems in Maine and Arizona that give candidates the option of rejecting contributions from special interests. Candidates are therefore freed from the need to court big-money contributors and are able to perform their duties with an eye to the public interest.

Despite the institutionalized system of corruption that produced the Tom DeLay, Jack Abramoff and Randy ``Duke'' Cunningham scandals, the purveyors of big money fear a loss of influence. Hopefully, voters will see through their well-financed opposition to this key reform.

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