Two days after Congressman David Jolly (FL-13) introduced the Stop Act, a bill banning members of Congress from personally asking for money, two U.S. Representatives have signed on as original cosponsors.
Florida’s John L. Mica and Tea Party favorite Walter Jones of North Carolina are the first members to join Jolly in his effort to get Congress back to work.
“Congressmen Mica and Jones understand the anger of the American people and I am grateful for the opportunity to work with them on the Stop Act. There is no legitimate reason why other colleagues, Republicans and Democrats, don’t join us in this historic effort to change Washington forever,†Jolly said.
“I am honored to join David Jolly as a cosponsor of the Stop Act. During my years in Congress, and especially during the post-Citizens United era, I have seen too many times where policy is driven by the needs of special interests, not the people. This bill would be a good first step in reducing the influence of special interests on Capitol Hill,†said Congressman Jones (NC-03).
“This is just one small step and we should continue to look at other measures that bring federal campaign financing under control,†added Congressman Mica (FL-7).
Meanwhile, the Lakeland Ledger and Gainesville Sun joined the Orlando Sentinel, Tampa Tribune, Tampa Bay Times and The Daytona Beach News-Journal in writing editorials supporting the Stop Act.
The Stop Act would prohibit federal officeholders from directly soliciting political contributions. Elected federal officials would still be permitted to attend fundraisers and speak to donors. Citizens would still be allowed to contribute to campaigns of their choosing. But under no circumstance would federal officeholders be allowed to personally ask people for campaign donations.