Episode 045 - Conversation with Professor of Law Joel M. Gora

Episode 045 - Conversation with Professor of Law Joel M. Gora.mp3

In this pod cast, recorded on Election Day 2009, BLS Professor of Law Joel M. Gora discusses his book Better Parties, Better Government: A Realistic Program for Campaign Finance Reform that he co-authored with American Enterprise Institute Senior Fellow Peter J. Wallison. The book describes how campaign finance laws prohibit political parties from fundraising on behalf of individual candidates, forcing candidates to finance their campaigns independently. The current campaign finance system favors wealthy candidates and protects incumbents while discouraging challengers. In the book, the authors argue that allowing parties a greater role in campaign fundraising would strengthen the political parties. It would also attract more qualified candidates, and free officeholders to govern without undue financial influence. The publisher AEI Press, besides issuing the print version earlier this year, has posted an online version of the book.

Prof. Gora teaches Election Law: the Law of Democracy, Federal Courts and the Federal System, Constitutional Law III: First Amendment, Constitutional Law, First Amendment Seminar at Brooklyn Law School. He has had an extensive history with free speech and other civil liberties issues including serving as General Counsel for the New York Civil Liberties Union and National Staff Counsel and Associate Legal Director with the American Civil Liberties Union. His many contributions to legal scholarship are listed on his Selected Works page.