Dole Drops Out

Elizabeth H. Dole, the first serious woman candidate for a major party's presidential nomination, is out of the Republican race. In the face of front-runner George W. Bush's overflowing campaign coffers, the former Red Cross president decided to end her campaign before the primaries even started. Dole had raised a paltry $4.7 million, in comparison to Bush's $60 million.

Dole's departure means, among other things, that the only GOP candidate willing to stand up to the party's anti-gun control orthodoxy is out of the picture. In May, Dole said she would retain the assault weapon ban and support the prohibition of armor-piercing bullets--both common-sense measures anathema to the powerful National Rifle Association.

Aside from her views on gun control, though, Dole's platform was nearly indistinguishable from Bush's, and just as ill-defined. Dole avoided making specific proposals, instead taking such gutsy stances as support for school discipline.

But Dole's departure from the race is still troubling, if for no other reason than because she made her decision before a single vote was cast. She is the fourth Republican candidate, after John Kasich, Dan Quayle and Lamar Alexander, to leave the race so early. Realizing they would have trouble getting their message out to voters, all cited Bush's mound of cash as one reason they quit the race.

For the Republicans and the Democrats, the massive amounts of money now being pumped into the presidential campaigns is stifling the primary system. The whole point of primaries is to put the nomination in the hands of the voters, not the party establishment. When candidates' ability to milk party donors weeds out candidates instead of popular opinion, the system is broken.

Money should not be the determining factor in deciding who will win the nominations or the presidency. It is bad for the country and bad for democracy. More than ever before, we need campaign finance reform to curb the influence of money and special interests on our elections.

The McCain-Feingold campaign finance legislation defeated in the Senate last week would not have helped Dole. That bill aims to ban soft money, unlimited donations to political parties. But it would have been a good first step toward cleaning up our electoral system. If Sens. John S. McCain (R-Ariz.) and Russell D. Feingold (D-Wisc.) can somehow overcome a GOP filibuster next time the bill is introduced, the next step should be to consider public financing of federal elections and primaries.

Already, the states are making moves in that direction. Voters in Massachusetts and Arizona last year passed ballot initiatives setting up systems of public financing for state elections. These rules ensure that every candidate with demonstrated popular support will have the funds he or she needs to run a campaign. If the federal government catches on, candidates like Elizabeth Dole who must run without the support of well-heeled donors might get a fair hearing next time, too.