Stop the Anonymous Hit Men: Make Shadowy Campaign Money the Issue
Thursday 14 October 2010
by: Paul Rogat Loeb, t r u t h o u t | Op-Ed
(Image: Lance Page / t r u t h o u t; Adapted: jenny downing, cmiper)
I've been going door-to-door canvassing and it's not that bad. Really. It's actually kind of fun, but only because I've found a way to break through people's cynicism.
It is no wonder people are cynical. Crashing down from the sky are the high hopes of two years ago. People are worried about jobs, the economy and their own uncertain futures. They are worried about the wars we're bogged down in and the threats to our planet. They don't like where America is headed or what most politicians or candidates are offering, and are often uncertain whether their vote even matters. But when I talked to disgruntled citizens about the takeover of our politics by destructive corporate interests, culminating in the barrage of anonymous attack ads unleashed by the Supreme Court's ghastly Citizens United decision, they quickly became willing to listen.
I am delighted the Democrats are finally hitting back at the US Chamber of Commerce and other Republican front groups for dumping millions of dollars of untraceable corporate contributions into the election, with the total likely to exceed $300 million. But the Democrats need to do more - and ordinary citizens do as well. It is our duty to make the buying of our democracy by corporate groups the salient issue of the coming election and beyond, because it affects everything else that we need to change.
How do we do this in the few remaining weeks before the elections? We need to talk about the ads of all the front groups from the Chamber of Commerce to Karl Rove's American Crossroads and the Koch brothers' Americans for Prosperity. We also need to highlight the Republican justices who overruled a century of legislative precedent to enact Citizens United, and talk about how Republican senators have stood in unison to prevent requiring corporate interests to at least put their names on their ads.
From what I can tell, most Americans are vaguely aware of the DISCLOSE Act, the transparency legislation that a Republican filibuster blocked by a single vote. When they do find out, they're outraged, because anonymous attack ads are an affront to even the barest standards of fairness, whatever one's political beliefs. In fact, Republican leaders like Mitch McConnell and John Boehner have long argued that so long as people knew who was paying for campaign ads, there was no need to regulate them through campaign finance reform or counterbalance them with public financing. "We ought to have full disclosure," said Boehner in 2007, "full disclosure of all of the money that we raise and how it is spent. And I think that sunlight is the best disinfectant." Yet, since Citizens United opened the floodgates for monied interests to drown out the rest of our voices, Republican leaders and their key allies have done everything they can to foster anonymous and untraceable attacks from the shadows.
Frustrated as voters are with the state of America, including with the Democrats' own frequent capitulation to corporate interests, most still don't want our government to become the wholly owned property of BP, Exxon, AIG, Goldman Sachs, Verizon and all the other corporations (including foreign ones) who can now buy our elections without people even knowing they're involved. Obama, the Democrats and progressive organizations, therefore, need to keep talking about the issue repeatedly and forcefully, through their speeches, debate points and ads and through the talking points they circulate for campaign volunteers. As ordinary citizens we have to do our part as well - knocking on doors, making phone calls and talking to friends, neighbors and coworkers who may be discontented with the Democrats, but would draw the line at furthering the total capture of our democracy by the most powerful economic interests on the planet. Or at least they would if we gave them the chance to have a conversation. But we can't just leave the issue up to the candidates.
Of course, we also need to tackle the issue beyond November. Public financing of campaigns would help immensely, using the model of $5 contributions and public matching funds that's worked wonderfully in Maine, Vermont and even Arizona. This model remains legal even under the new Supreme Court rules, would reduce the corporate influence on both parties and can complement a push to reverse Citizens United through Congressional legislation, grassroots organizing and perhaps a constitutional amendment. But for now, we need to focus on whether or not those running to represent us at least recognize our right to know who is trying to buy our votes. The political allegiances are clear from the DISCLOSE Act. If we work well enough at explaining why the money matters, it could tip race after close race and help us begin to rein in the power of unaccountable greed.
This work by Truthout is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.
Comments
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"Pay no attention to the man
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 09:24 — The Wiz (not verified)"Pay no attention to the man behind the (money) curtain!"
it's still Apathetic because
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 09:29 — Anonymous (not verified)it's still Apathetic because we are still arguing bi-polar paradigms. Democracy is a collective pot of many views...not just Democratic ticket.
Nice try.
"transparency" was one of
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 11:01 — Anonymous (not verified)"transparency" was one of Obama's campaign promises. O's & party's DEEDS have been so obviously transparent to the point they now lack ANY credibility. Its too late for republican scare tactics.
What a great idea! If all
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 11:31 — Tim Riley (not verified)What a great idea! If all people (including corporations) are limited to $5 or $20 campaign donations with limited public financing, then free speech rights are protected and poor candidates can fight fairly with multi-millionaires who want to buy elections with personally financed war chests. If the current election swings to the corporate side of the left-right, I'm afraid the Citizen's United travesty will corrupt our government beyond repair. The rot must stop.
Citizens United was
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 11:38 — Anonymous (not verified)Citizens United was undoubtedly the worst Supreme Court decision in history. It removes essentially any check against a plutocratic takeover of the U.S. government. The Left has got to hit back hard against this decision and the flood of money Rove, the Koch brothers, etc. are using for relentless ad assaults. Don't just vote. Make calls. Canvass. Attend rallies. Talk to your neighbors. Pull out the stops.
2 years ago a centrist
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 12:53 — Lead Round the Bend (not verified)2 years ago a centrist junior Senator was vetted by AIPAC, Wall Street and Defense Inc. (High hopes should have been crushed summer 2008.)
Millions of Americans don't have a clue about the USSC decision. sure they'll take to the streets for Roe v Wade, but a decision like this seems to escape them, I believe this is (again) the media's fault.
Why would Big Media cover
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 14:37 — RoughAcres (not verified)Why would Big Media cover this story? THEY'RE Big Corporations, TOO.
Rupert Murdoch's $2Million to the GOP is only the tip of the iceberg.
Totally agree with anon
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 14:38 — photonracer (not verified)Totally agree with anon 16.38. Gather your pitchforks, machetes, pikes, flags and march en masse on this frankenstein creation. You as a single entity can make a difference with just one vote. Yes, don't just stop there. Make your real voice heard even if you are part of the chorus. Keep repeating loudly "Citizens United is not a human being!" Just because the Stupremes said so does NOT make it true. They will eventually have to reverse themselves with enough resistance.
The revolution must continue or we waste away with ennui.
There is a way to stop this
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 14:43 — DT Lincoln (not verified)There is a way to stop this demolition of our democracy.
Simply Google PUBLIC CITIZEN who present the immediate need to protest Citizens United and who as an organization provide excellent knowledge and leadership concerning this abomination and misinterpretation of the First Amendment and the ruling of the Supreme Court. It is not too late. Here is a way out which this corporate take over is a fast growing cancer.
Americans need to wake up to
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 15:30 — Anonymous (not verified)Americans need to wake up to a very simple fact: war has been declared on them by the "two percent" that control and profit from corporate, financial-sector plunder.
They have marshalled the entire structure of government from the courts to the legislatures, from the tax authorities to the department of motor vehicles to harass, vex, despoil, repress and intimidate the people of the country.
They own the media which they use to distract and misinform the electorate and they run the schools which they use to brainwash future generations.
One Americans see the truth, they will be able to be free.
To 16:38 — Anonymous: I've
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 16:12 — Anonymous (not verified)To 16:38 — Anonymous:
I've talked with my neighbors. They are oblivious, and more importantly, more concerned that capitalism and religious freedom is under assault by socialists (their words, not mine!) Of course, it helps that the Chamber of Commerce, of which they are members, has been drumming this mantra into their heads for literally, decades!
I'm forced to walk alone in my predominantly Catholic neighborhood of "the commies are coming to get us and take our religion away" cr*p. Faux News has been miraculously effective in its total, hypocritical, evisceration of the sanity and reason of the interests of the common man. It is awesome how their propaganda works in religious circles!
But I will vote, and I will scream, and pitchfork, and hold my American flag as high as I can for real, honest-to-goodness freedom from corporate takeover in this country!!!
We need a Youtube video of a
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 16:50 — Heidi Cash (not verified)We need a Youtube video of a resuscitated Billionaires for Bush praising that one vote Rep who killed the Disclose Act and saved all of us from the humiliating need to admit we funded anyone who is for killing regulations. But even at risk of exposure, we mst do all we can to protect our right to profit off more boom-bust cycles. The litmus test - support anyone who insists on extend the tax cuts for the wealthy...
... and I mean ANY candidate with the right talking points. Even those who love history so much that they re-enact Naxi's killing Austrian Jews. And if a candidate in Delaware needs Senate campaign contributions to pay mortgage and past tax debts, remember, the faster you send her more money, the faster the problem will be solved and forgotten.
Thanks to the Citizens United ruling by right-minded Supremes, we will soon be able to fund the costs of pro-corporate, anti-regulation, anti-tax laws by getting rid of all those costly entitlements for minimum wage, health care and unemployment insurance and obstructionist regulations about what goes into food, into the water supply, into the air, and into our children's minds.
Member, Billionaires for Bush
I have a novel idea for all
Sat, 10/16/2010 - 17:09 — David Whitten (not verified)I have a novel idea for all being affected by negative campaign ads. Here it is, "don't believe the ads." Actually, why am I saying this? People still think Bruce Willis saved Christmas.
Look at it this way. Say
Sun, 10/17/2010 - 10:01 — Bob (not verified)Look at it this way. Say you open a restaurant beside a McDonalds. You serve good tasting, fairly priced food; you pay your staff fair wages & give them health care & you make all the facts public with your ad budget. McDonalds does none of the above but they have the billion dollar ad budget & of course, they don't sell food (which is garbage); they sell fun. Of course, there is no fun, they even have signs kicking you out after a few minutes. How long do you think you would stay in business? "From each according to their gullibility, to each according to their greed" truly is the American corporate motto & sad to say---it works!
Unfortunately, this is a
Sun, 10/17/2010 - 10:45 — Brian (not verified)Unfortunately, this is a catch-22 situation. Too few incumbents are willing to offend the big-spending corporations, because almost every one of them gets a large amount of money from them. That's why even disclosure legislation failed. Because the corporations and rich will spend like crazy to defeat those who would vote for such legislation, it will continue to get more and more impossible to pass it. It will also get more and more impossible to get anyone appointed to the Supreme Court who is not "corporate-friendly" enough.
Working from the grassroots upward might eventually work, and that may be our only hope. But by then it may be too late to save our economy or our environment. I'm not saying to give up, I'm just saying we have been losing battle after battle against the corporations and the rich, and is making it more and more difficult to win. If enough people understood the danger, we could start winning again. But it's so difficult when the enemy controls virtually all the media.
I'm not holding my breath for the Democratic party leaders to take this on as a campaign issue, regardless of how many people would be on their side. As usual, they are too afraid to do the right thing at the right time. They are too afraid to give up that money now, even if it could mean the difference between keeping their majorities and losing them. It's a short-sighted strategy, not just wrong but self-destructive. But they are too afraid to give it up.
Thank the CEO Supreme Court
Sun, 10/17/2010 - 14:30 — Anonymous (not verified)Thank the CEO Supreme Court for the flood of money buying the elections ..So much foreign money is good too...al-Qaida, Taliban and Hamas want to keep these crooks in office and buy more tea bags to control. When you buy a vote at a polling station it is illegal, when you buy their votes in Congress, it is good for the country and their wallets.
Let's also remember which
Sun, 10/17/2010 - 22:31 — Ken Hall (not verified)Let's also remember which administrations put the activist/conservative bloc of justices on the Supreme Court. When they were up for confirmation there was usually good information about what their perspectives would be once on the court. If you voted for Reagan and/or the Bushes and are upset by the consequences of the Citizens United ruling, don't be. You got what you deserve.
de Tocqueville warned us
Mon, 10/18/2010 - 12:20 — Anonymous (not verified)de Tocqueville warned us long ago "How an Aristocracy May be Created by Industry." America has been rapidly transitioning into a plutocracy, in which ordinary citizens are ever-more disempowered. The Republican Party is the vehicle of this transformation, as the Supreme Court clearly demonstrates--and unless we can reverse Citizens United, there will be no stopping a headlong rush toward the kind of new aristocracy (or corporate fascism, if you prefer) that de Tocqueville envisioned.
The "don't regulate
Tue, 10/19/2010 - 06:09 — Bang (not verified)The "don't regulate anything" crowd continually purport that a free market will regulate itself, that open competition is good and that government regulation- involvement - intervention present obstacles to the natural' sequence of events in capitalism. So if a level playing field is so good for competition and the fostering of capitalist ventures... why do they persist in lobbying for special advantages and laws that enable them to have leverage over competitors?
I believe that they are not
Tue, 10/19/2010 - 06:11 — bang (not verified)I believe that they are not capable of competing on even footing. They buy favor and then use their leverage to proclaim that they are innovative, progressive, competitive... all the while lumbering ever so slightly in a positive societal direction. Meanwhile, they use that same purchased power to "acquire" really innovative entities in order to REGULATE progress.
dialog that further delays intelligent discourse and resolution.
I find it difficult to
Tue, 10/19/2010 - 06:12 — Bang (not verified)I find it difficult to believe that we can not reach some reasonable compromises that allow billionaires to remain billionaires while allowing average people to prosper. I simply can't understand the vicious and harmful
acquisto l e v i t r a
Tue, 01/10/2012 - 04:36 — Pamscruircugs (not verified)What do you think about Japan?
l e v i t r a