Nancy Pelosi

Leaders of the Democratic Party are calling on President Bush to restore confidence in the U.S. political process in response to the Enron scandal.

In the partys' weekly radio address, House of Representatives Democrat Nancy Pelosi says the sudden collapse of the energy-trader Enron, which caused so many people to lose their jobs and their hard-earned pensions, has clearly demonstrated the need for meaningful campaign finance reform.

She called on the president "to return political power to the people where it began and where it belongs".

Enron has contributed millions of dollars to politicians in both major political parties over the past 10 years.

House advocates of a bill to reduce the role of money in politics are trying to force a new debate on the campaign finance reform issue, which could take place before the end of the month.

A bill sponsored by Massachusetts Democrat Marty Meehan and Connecticut Republican Christopher Shays would bar unregulated and unlimited "soft money" donations to political parties and put new restrictions on broadcast attack ads in the period right before elections.

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