'I’m not raising any money while the committee is working,' Kerry told the Boston Globe. Kerry: No cash while I debt-slash

Campaign finance reform groups scored a minivictory Monday, as Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) became the first supercommittee member to swear off all fundraising while he serves on the debt-slashing panel.

The watchdog group Public Campaign, in conjunction with a number of other advocacy organizations including Public Citizen, National People’s Action and Center for Community Change, is launching a massive state-by-state lobbying effort to persuade the supercommittee’s 12 members to suspend accepting cash during their tenure on the panel.


The reform groups’ push is another example of how heavily the supercommittee is expected to be courted as it looks to slash the deficit by Thanksgiving.

Kerry’s announcement was first reported by The Boston Globe on Monday. He also told the Globe that he will limit the number of meetings he holds with lobbyists.

“I will not fundraise; I will raise no money. I’m not raising any money while the committee is working,” Kerry told the Globe.

Kerry’s office downplayed the news. “This is about the most overblown nonissue ever. Sen. Kerry isn’t in cycle, hasn’t actively been fundraising for himself, and he’s chosen not to schedule fundraisers right now for his reelection campaign years away. That’s all folks,” said Kerry’s spokeswoman, Jodi Seth.

Details about the anti-fundraising push are still in development, Public Campaign’s national campaign director David Donnelly said, but it most likely will involve grass-roots lobbying, media buys and public events.

“We’re very happy about Sen. Kerry’s decision, and we think it’s an easy thing for members of the congressional supercommittee to do,” Donnelly said. “We hope the others follow suit.”

Supercommittee members have been inundated with requests from interest groups trying to make sure their tax carveouts and other priorities are not on the chopping block.

The dozen lawmakers on the panel are all working to figure out how best to deal with the massive information flow. At least two members have put into place systems for ferreting through the materials, according to a Democratic lobbyist.

Kerry isn’t the only lawmaker conscious of fundraising while on the powerful budget-slashing panel.

Two other supercommittee members, Sens. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) and Max Baucus (D-Mont.), have publicly said they have scaled back fundraising in recent weeks. But to date, Kerry is the only member to definitively reject campaign contributions.

Certainly, it’s easier for some members of Congress than others to forgo fundraising.

Case in point: Kerry does not face reelection again until 2014, and senators typically conduct the bulk of their fundraising during the final two years of their six-year terms. Through June, Kerry reported having $2.83 million cash on hand.

Baucus has $2.76 million cash on hand through June. Portman, who won’t face reelection until 2016, enjoys nearly $1.51 million cash on hand.

And while House members on the committee face reelection every two years, some of them, such as Rep. Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas) with more than $2 million available, are relatively flush compared with most House members. Rep. Dave Camp (R-Mich.) has about $2.4 million through June, while Fred Upton (R-Mich.) has nearly $2 million, Rep. Chris Van Hollen has $1.72 million, Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) has more than $1.32 million and Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) has $635,552. Save for Becerra, the five other House members have cash-on-hand totals that far exceed most other House members.

Public Citizen argues that taking money while negotiations are under way could have a corrupting effect on the supercommittee’s work, particularly with numerous corporations and special interests standing to lose significant money as a result of government budget cuts.

Other committee members like Clyburn and Becerra have continued fundraising. That fundraising, in some cases, has come under scrutiny. Becerra, for example, faced an early controversy after the Investment Company Institute sent an email about two hours after the California Democrat was named to the panel, touting his new role. At the time, Becerra distanced himself from the fundraising invitation but did attend the fundraiser.

Investment Company Institute’s Jim Hart sent out an email encouraging attendance for the trade group’s upcoming $1,500-per-person fundraiser based on Becerra’s status as one of the elite 12.

It is also highly unlikely that Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairwoman Patty Murray (D-Wash.) would nix fundraising over the next two months, given her role as the party committee’s rainmaker in chief.