Editorial
Kerry should reject nomination ruse

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For several days, Americans have been pondering the thought that John Kerry would be offered the presidential nomination of the Democratic Party and decline to accept it for five weeks. He is said to be making up his mind this week on whether to do that. The incentive to do it would be overwhelming except for one thing: It looks like fishing cynically for a loophole.

Which it is.

Here is the law: Before the convention, a candidate who accepts limits on private money can qualify simultaneously for public money. After the convention, the nominee gets another $75 million in public money.

Each party knew these rules when they scheduled their conventions, and made different decisions. The Republicans assumed their candidate would be using private money in the primary, and would have plenty of it. They scheduled their convention late. The Democrats assumed their candidate would be using public money, and would be running out of it. They scheduled their convention early.

The Democrats made the wrong assumption. Kerry did not accept public money. He has raised less than Bush, but it is a record amount for a Democrat, and he is not running out. Now he worries about getting his $75 million five weeks earlier than Bush, because he will have to make the money last that much longer. That was his party's choice. It is a choice under rules the Democrats generally supported. Kerry ought to follow them.

If the rules are unfair, they ought to be changed — but not in the middle of an election campaign. And if the rules are changed, it ought to be done with a realistic idea of how people might respond.

In the writing of laws meant to do good, there is always a tendency to believe that the intention is what counts. The intention of the McCain-Feingold law and other campaign-financing rules was to reduce the money in politics and to make it more honest. Reality has been different.

This is not the first time efforts to ply the rules have warped democratic procedure. We are used to stories about politicians announcing today they will officially announce a run for office next week. This is the fake announcement, and it passes without remark.

But a fake nomination? That is a new thing, and not welcome.