Check out what Jefferson said

The author of the View from Capitol Hill article "Campaign Reform or Muzzle?," July 20, who proclaims the "speech tax" to be "unconstitutional," ignores a basic tenet of American society. Americans believe in fair play for all competitors.

PAC money and other special-interest funding give incumbents an unfair advantage (media exposure) over their competitors.

One focus of campaign reform should be to assure that each candidate has equal and adequate media exposure to present substantive proposals on what should be done to solve the varied issues relevant to constituents and to the nation. For a candidate to spend vast amounts of money, often obtained from sources outside the district or State, for general rhetoric and negative commentary on opponents is not constructive.

It exposes the image of the well-financed candidate to the public, but it does not edify. It is inconceivable that such "free speech" was the intent behind the First Amendment. To try to fall back on the Constitution as a way to justify taking unfair advantage in a political campaign seems reprehensible. G. B. Lloyd, Southwest Harbor, Maine

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