Apart from a few political junkies and some avid C-SPAN watchers, few Americans are paying much attention to the debate on the floor of the U.S. Senate this week – but they should.

Senators are discussing the merits and legality of political campaign financing. And although the debate itself seems about as exciting as watching paint dry, the ultimate outcome of the debate could radically change the nature of American politics.

Led by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., some bold politicians are daring to do what few have done before – try to make politics more fair. It’s a novel concept, we know.

But it’s one that is often buried in hidden &uot;soft money&uot; contributions. The term refers to loopholes in current laws which allow unlimited donations to national and state political parties.

The parties then turn around and use the money to attempt to sway the outcome of the election. The ads are usually filled with impact and stop just short of actually advocating election or defeat of any one candidate, which would, in fact, violate the law.

The problem is that when dealing with such vast quantities of &uot;soft money&uot; – parties collected more than $480 million in the 200 election period – it’s difficult to track where the money goes and how it’s all spent.

And, at the very least, the piles of &uot;soft money&uot; being thrown around give the public the appearance that something seedy is going on behind the scenes.

Whether something sinister is happening or not, Americans need campaign finance reform – even if most of them aren’t excited about it.