THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, February 17, 1995 TAG: 9502160131
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 34 lines
Sen. Mark L. Earley of Chesapeake has probably read the cards right.
Casino operators will make sure candidates who favor riverboat gambling in Virginia do not suffer from a lack of funds during next November's General Assembly campaigns.
To prevent the potential influx of gambling money into state politics, Sen. Earley has proposed a law that would ban political contributions from out-of-state casino operators. He says he'll push the measure during the closing weeks of the legislative season.
No good can come of mixing gambling money with Virginia politics. The idea makes us as nervous as it does Sen. Earley.
Can Virginia enact a law that prevents citizens of other states from spending their money however the see fit? Not likely.
Banning casino operators from making campaign contributions is no more likely to withstand a constitutional test than banning contributions from any other single special interest - say, tobacco companies, the National Rifle Association or, for that matter, John Q. Public.
More meaningful restraints on campaign contributions of all kinds are what's needed, not last-minute legislation meant to punish a specific group of contributors. by CNB