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PEACE & JUSTICE CALENDAR
compiled by
Jean Buskin
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Cartoons of
Dan McConnell
featuring
Tiny the Worm
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Free Speech For People, Not Corporations!
Coalition Aims to Amend Constitution
by Doug Collins
In reaction to the January 21 Supreme Court ruling that corporations are legally equivalent to persons in terms of "free speech rights" when giving campaign donations, a coalition of public interest organizations including Voter Action, Public Citizen, the Center for Corporate Policy, and the American Independent Business Alliance has unveiled a campaign to amend the Constitution to restore the First Amendment to its original intent of protecting the free speech of people, not of corporations.
The website of the campaign is freespeechforpeople.org, and Democrat rabble-rouser Michael Swanson sent us the link for a good video on this same site at freespeechforpeople.org/node/35. Please also check out an online petition at www.movetoamend.org.
However, one thing I'd like to know is: by what warped legal precedent is any campaign donation—corporate or individual—regarded as "free speech"? It would be best to move completely beyond the concept of "money talks."
more below
cartoon by Dan McConnell
Corporate Money Flows To Politics Wherever It Can
from the National Institute on Money in State Politics
Yesterday's "Citizens United v FEC" ruling by the United States Supreme Court opened the gates for corporations and unions to use money from their general treasuries to advocate independently for or against federal candidates.
Voters will be familiar with the results of such independent expenditures—think of the television ads strongly attacking or promoting candidates. Independent campaigns—those not coordinated with candidates' campaigns—can influence elections.
The ruling has no effect on campaign limits already in place at the state and federal levels but may effectively overturn laws in 24 states that prohibit corporations from funding advocacy for or against state candidates.
According to the National Institute on Money in State Politics, a quick look at elections in 2007 and 2008 shows that in 22 states that prohibit corporations from giving to candidates, individuals contributed about half of the money raised by candidates and non-individuals provided less than one-fourth. In 28 states that allow corporate giving, however, the reverse is true.
The nonprofit, nonpartisan National Institute on Money in State Politics collects and analyzes campaign contribution information on state-level candidates, political party committees, and ballot committees. Its free, searchable database of contributions, as well as the full text of the report is at followthemoney.org/press/ReportView.phtml?r=414&em=78. Contacts are at followthemoney.org and tel. 406-449-2480.
Quotes on Corporate Campaign Finance
"All contributions by corporations to any political committee or for any political purpose should be forbidden by law."
—Teddy Roosevelt in the first years of the 20th century, when he was also proposing public financing of federal election
"[Corporations now] can just open their treasuries, completely buy up all the television time, and drown out everyone else's voices."
—Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wisconsin, co-author of the McCain/Feingold campaign finance law
"The Supreme Court just predetermined the winners of next November's elections. It won't be Republicans. It won't be Democrats. It will be corporate America."
—Sen. Charles Schumer, D-New York
"Free speech rights are for people, not corporations. In wrongly assigning First Amendment protections to corporations, the Supreme Court has now unleashed a torrent of corporate money in our political process unmatched by any campaign expenditure totals in US history."
—John Bonifaz, Voter Action's legal director ◆
I wish in my lifetime I'll actually get to see another Constitutional Convention happen. Don't know if this issue will resonate enough to make that happen, though. Even though campaign finance is perhaps the basic problem of our politics, it seems that not many activists are focused much on it.