Showing posts with label Campaign Finance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Campaign Finance. Show all posts

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Are the Supreme Court Judges on Discounted Crack?


WTF?

The Supreme Court has overturned a century-old ban that stops corporations spending whatever the f**k they want on a political candidate.

Now, thanks to 5 of these fools in the SC, corporations can basically choose and place their own interest ahead of the greater good.
In a 5-4 decision, the court's conservative bloc said corporations have the same 1st Amendment rights as individuals and, for that reason, the government may not stop corporations from spending freely to influence the outcome of federal elections.

The decision is probably the most sweeping and consequential handed down under Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. And the outcome may well have an immediate impact on this year's mid-term elections to Congress.
Until now, corporations and unions have been barred from spending their own treasury funds on broadcast ads or billboards that urge the election or defeat of a federal candidate.

This restriction dates back to 1907, when President Theodore Roosevelt called on Congress to forbid corporations, railroads and national banks from using their money in federal election campaigns.

After World War II, Congress extended this ban to labor unions.
In today's decision, the high court struck down that restriction and said the 1st Amendment gives corporations, just like individuals, a right to spend their own money on political ads.
This is feels a G.I. Joe episode where Cobra brainwashed SCOTUS to make Destro president. What were they thinking? This can be the beginning of the end of the pubic making a difference.

Well, Obama and others are not feeling it and plan to do something about it.

President Obama, along with members of the Senate and the House of Representatives, have vowed to fight back against Thursday morning's Supreme Court decision rolling back restrictions on corporate campaign spending. Among the possible responses under consideration: an amendment to the Constitution.

"It's time to take matters into our own hands to enact a constitutional amendment that once and for all declares that we the people govern our elections and campaigns, not we the corporations," said Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.)
Wow, what's really going on?

source

The Stuff

My photo
Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.