Campaign Finance Reform
OUR REPRESENTATIVE DEMOCRACY IS CORRUPTED BY BIG MONEY IN POLITICS.
OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS MUST HEAR FROM US.
THE PROBLEM OF CORPORATE PERSONHOOD.
The age old problem of big money running government exploded January 21, 2010 when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. FEC that corporations could spend unlimited amounts of money to influence elections. By enshrining the legal fiction of “corporate personhood”, it equated corporations with persons and money with speech, thus saying under the constitution that corporations have free speech to spend as much as they want to buy elections. Our democracy is now for sale to the highest bidder.
Here is a video that shows the impact of that decision: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k5kHACjrdEY
Fortunately, citizens all over the country are rising up to oppose this unprecedented ruling, and to educate the public on the need for an amendment to the Constitution to reverse it.
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
LEARN about the various proposals for an amendment to the Constitution, and see the features of each. https://movetoamend.org/other-amendments
We believe the "Gold Standard" is the "We the People" amendment, proposed by the Move to Amend Coalition, because it addresses both corporate personhood and money as speech by establishing that only human beings have constitutional rights. This does more than overturn Citizens United. Corporate personhood must be addressed. If you agree, please join us in promoting that amendment.
See this list of reasons to address corporate personhood:
WHY CAN’T CONGRESS DEAL WITH THIS BY PASSING A LAW?
The problem is that the Supreme Court has interpreted the Constitution to say that corporations have First Amendment rights just as people do. Congress cannot overturn a court decision based on the Constitution.
WHAT CONGRESS CAN DO—IF WE PRESS THEM:
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Pass laws for public financing of federal elections, to give candidates the chance to compete against corporate election dollars. See the Fair Elections Now Act (FENA). ACT NOW
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Pass laws to require corporations and unions to stand publicly by their ads, so people can see clearly who is spending large amounts of money to influence elections. Disclosure of donors is key, because federal and state laws limiting campaign contributions by individuals are ineffectual when donations are pooled in front groups by anonymous donors who evade current campaign finance laws. See the Disclose Act. ACT NOW
LOBBYISTS ARE RUNNING OUR GOVERNMENT
There are eleven lobbyists in Washington for every Senator and Representative.
Lobbyists are not only in Washington, but in Tallahassee. They fill the halls of our state house to influence our state officials.
Many of them represent large corporations that are making major donations to the campaigns of elected officials.
Do you think our Congressmen and state legislators will pass laws in the interests of the people, or of the large corporations? Many of these corporations are outsourcing the very jobs needed by people in this country, pay less than their share of taxes, and get bailed out by us, the American taxpayers, when they are in trouble.
Who’s getting rich? The corporations, their wealthiest investors, the corporate executives, and the legislators who write themselves nice salaries, health care packages, and retirement benefits. Small investors? Not so much.
OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS MUST HEAR FROM US
As one Representative said, “If we don’t hear from the people, the only voices we hear are those of the lobbyists.”
It is time for all of us to learn the issues, connect the dots, get involved, take action and speak out to save our democracy. We the people can make a difference if we will. ACT NOW
