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USTX1 - Citizens United Ruling
| Congress should amend the Constitution to overrule the absurd Citizens United ruling by the Supreme Court | |
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Description
The Supreme Court has essentially handed elections to big business and the 1%. Since the decision is apparently based on the Constitution, the only thing Congress can probably do is amend the constitution that was used to make this decision. Hopefully people are disgusted by the ridiculous attack ads that were unleashed by these shadowy groups during the Republican primaries and will do something about it.
Arguments
Co-Sign Sherrod's Letter:
"We, the undersigned, believe that democracy is not for sale. We believe that corporations are not people. And we hereby pledge our support to a Constitutional Amendment designed to overturn the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United."
"We, the undersigned, believe that democracy is not for sale. We believe that corporations are not people. And we hereby pledge our support to a Constitutional Amendment designed to overturn the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United."
Money has always been a factor in politics, but we are seeing something new in the no-holds barred flow of seven and eight figure checks, most undisclosed, into super-PACs; they fundamentally threaten to overwhelm the political process over the long run and drown out the voices of ordinary citizens. We need to start with passing the Disclose Act that is already written and been sponsored in Congress - to at least force disclosure of who is giving to who. We should also pass legislation prohibiting the bundling of campaign contributions from lobbyists. Over the longer term, I think we need to seriously consider mobilizing a constitutional amendment process to overturn Citizens United (assuming the Supreme Court doesn't revisit it). Even if the amendment process falls short, it can shine a spotlight of the super-PAC phenomenon and help apply pressure for change.
Source: reddit.com
Source: reddit.com
In Dylan Ratigan's book "Greedy Bastards" he recalls a conversation with Rep. John Yarmuth (KY), where the Rep said that money in politics is like a suicide-bomber vest that every politician must wear. If any one politician tries to remove the money vest, he or she blows up. The only way to remove the money from politics safely is if every politician is forced to remove their money vest at the same time.
With the corrupt culture that has grown within DC, I can envision that this statement is so very true. It also means that it won't be changed easily and sets up a huge battle between the monied interests that want to control government and the masses. That is if the masses get off their asses!
FDR once met with a group of activists who sought his support for bold legislation. He listened to their arguments for some time and then said, "You've convinced me. Now go out and make me do it." He understood that the more effectively people created a sense of urgency and crisis, the easier it would be for him to push for needed legislation.
Having a president who inspires people to act collectively on their own behalf can make a difference. It gives people hope and courage to defy obstacles. It's something our country has lacked for a long, long time.
With the corrupt culture that has grown within DC, I can envision that this statement is so very true. It also means that it won't be changed easily and sets up a huge battle between the monied interests that want to control government and the masses. That is if the masses get off their asses!
FDR once met with a group of activists who sought his support for bold legislation. He listened to their arguments for some time and then said, "You've convinced me. Now go out and make me do it." He understood that the more effectively people created a sense of urgency and crisis, the easier it would be for him to push for needed legislation.
Having a president who inspires people to act collectively on their own behalf can make a difference. It gives people hope and courage to defy obstacles. It's something our country has lacked for a long, long time.
Change is necessary!!!
Super PAC's should be banned. I as a citizen want to know who is giving BIG bucks to whom. This practice need serious legislation to outlaw super pac's. Also The campaign time should be shortened to about six weeks before the election. The political antics is ridiculous!!!
Citizens United says the right to free speech includes an unlimited right to advertise political views, but this doesn't square with the fact that individuals are only allowed to donate $2500 per federal candidate. We accept that the $2500/person limit is good policy - ensuring that elections are determined by popular will rather than money - so why do we now think that corporations must have an unlimited right to spend on political speech? In both cases (donation to candidate and independent expenditure) the money buys biased political ads. If you can limit one, you can limit the other. There are many cases in which speech is allowed but limited for good reason - no cigarette advertising on TV, no permanent occupation of public areas for protest...
Counterarguments
This isn't quite so simple. The decision is based on the First Amendment, something I'd rather not mess with.
If businesses can't spend money to support or oppose candidates, then what about media organizations?
- Newspapers regularly endorse candidates and spend the company's money publicizing this view
- Newspapers and television stations regularly criticize politicians and express viewpoints on public policy debates, again spending the media company's money to do so.
- What about this website? A company's money went into creating this forum. The founders publish their own viewpoints on positions. Would you want that to be illegal?
There's no way to reliably distinguish a "real" media organization from a "shadowy group." The only way to "fix" Citizens United is to demand disclosure and give greater rights to shareholders to restrict the political activities of corporations.
Amend the constitution, no. SCOTUS reverse itself, yes.
In support the of the 1st amendment, consider this:
If the right to free speech was taken as literally as the 'seperation of church and state' misinterpretation, then we would live in a society where
- no press could ever mention politics
- cnn, fox, msnbc could not legally exist
- you wouldnt be able to publicly stump or address your grievances about your government
There is no separation of church and state clause in the constitution. It says the government shall not endorse the creation of, nor restrict the exercise of religion. IE, it can't declare a state faith (similar to saying the official language is...) and it cant prevent people from expressing faith. It DOES NOT say that faith can not exist in public.
Citizens United stood up for the 1st amendment. We dont need a constitutional amendment to address the influence of money, we need smarter voters. We also need campaign finance law that limits contributions and restricts 'bundling'.
That is ridiculous.
4 Topics
Discussion
started
by SherrodBrown
on Sep 10
PETITION: Overturn Citizen's United
Sign my petition: "We, the undersigned, believe that democracy is not for sale. We believe that corporations are not people. And we hereby pledge our support to a Constitutional Amendment designed to overturn the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United."
started
by GregOrr
on Apr 30
End Corporate Personhood by constitutional amendment?
Related Ideas
| Pass through statute a limitation to corporate personhood and overturn Citizens United More detail | |
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| Amend the constitution to say that corporations are not people More detail | |
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| Require public financing for Federal elections. Candidates collect threshold number of small donations to qualify. More detail | |
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| Amend the Constitution to make clear that corporations are not persons and money is not speech More detail | |
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| Prohibit foreign & government contractor influence in Federal elections and establish spending disclosure requirements More detail | |
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| If you can't vote, you can't contribute to political campaigns. More detail | |
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| Prohibit the bundling of campaign contributions from lobbyists More detail | |
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| Restore democracy to its rightful position atop capitalism. More detail | |
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| The right to political speech is a right to have your voice heard, not a right to monopolize the conversation More detail | |
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| $50 tax credit for campaign contributions and a "People's Fund" to help candidates be heard when up against Super PACs More detail | |
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| Koch Bros, Karl Rove and other Super PACs will again try to steal the election More detail | |
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last reply by DaDaDan on Nov 5
Citizens United - corporate personhood (1 reply)