Name__________________________________________Date______________________
Reading Comprehension
Volume 5, Number 11, November 15, 1999
www.rhlschool.com

Read the selection without stopping to choose the correct missing words. Then read it again, pausing to underline the correct words. Finally, read the selection again to see if it makes sense.

Campaign Finance Reform

One of the political issues we hear a lot about lately is campaign finance reform. The people who are calling for reform usually want the government to pay for campaigns and/or limit the amount of money that candidates and their supporters can spend.
One reason that reform is called for is that it costs so much to run for political office. Candidates have to spend a great deal of time and effort raising money. The incumbents (those already in office) have less time to do their jobs since they must attend so many fund raising events.
Another __1__ is the fear that candidates will be owned or controlled by the “special interest groups” that contribute to their campaigns. Sometimes this certainly seems to be the __2__.
On the __3__ side are those who caution that just because you call something “reform,” doesn’t mean it’s really __4__. They __5__ that our right to freedom of speech is meaningless if the government can limit anyone’s ability to get his or her message out to the people.
If one person or a group of people want to tell the __6__ what they think about an issue or candidate, they have to buy advertising on TV, radio, and in newspapers and magazines. They might want to display billboards along highways and banners on heavily trafficked Web sites. All this costs a lot of money.
Opponents of laws that regulate or limit spending say that you don’t really have freedom of speech or freedom of the press if you can’t get your message out. They say that in a democracy, the government should never be able to regulate political discussion or the means to distribute ideas. They believe that this is most important when the voters are about to make __7__.
What do you think about this issue? Listen to what the __8__ for national office have to say. Which candidates __9__ the most __10__ to you?

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