Dylan Ratigan Launches Campaign Finance Reform Push

www.observer.com:

Say what you will about the drugs and the drum circles, the Occupy Wall Street movement has brought out a more radical side of Dylan Ratigan, MSNBC’s straight-laced global finance correspondent and weekday afternoon anchor.

Mr. Ratigan was down at Zuccotti Park most of last weekend, interviewing participants and chatting them up about his new crusade on behalf of campaign finance reform. Late last month, Mr. Ratigan established a foundation called Get Money Out with the goal of amending the Constitution to forbid private campaign contributions. Since September 27, he’s racked up more than 170,000 signatures.

Read the whole story: www.observer.com

 

 

Comments

[BenDoubleCrossed]

12:47 PM on 10/16/2011

The hush-hush of politics is controlling a segment of people without those people recognizing they are being managed.

Campaign laws are a great example; politicians exempt the commercial press, because the 1st Amendment prohibits abridging their freedom of speech and the press. But those same laws regulate grass roots communications.

Thereby, Americans are robbed of fair elections.

Handing a megaphone to commercial media, themselves special interests dependent on the advertising dollars of other special interests, insure their monopoly in the market place of ideas. Muzzling the grassroots does not level the playing field or protect we the people. When soft money is restricted incumbents win. When grass roots can spend unlimited soft money challengers are more likely to win.

If the United States Supreme Court defined freedom of religion using the same logic that it has used to define a free press only the church or synagogue "as an institution" would enjoy freedom of religion, not its parishioners!

[Marcospinelli]

03:00 AM on 10/13/2011

Late last month, Mr. Ratigan established a foundation called Get Money Out with the goal of amending the Constitution to forbid private campaign contributions.

===========================

Ratigan has already reneged.

No sooner had he gotten the first 100,000 signatures on a petition with an amendment written by Jimmy Williams to get all money out of politics did he add an alternative amendment by Lawrence Lessig allowing some money.

Talk about stepping on the message.

I pushed his original petition and stopped when someone pointed out to me the change. I've yet to get any straight talk out of Ratigan as to WTH he's doing.

[BenDoubleCrossed]

12:34 PM on 10/28/2011

BIG MEDIA TALKS THE TALK BUT DOES NOT WALK THE WALK

The corporate media are the biggest promoter of campaign reform but they are the problem and not the solution.

The commercial press is the voice of the corporate special interests, themselves corporations and dependent on the advertising dollars of other corporations. But they were exempted from the Federal Campaign Reform Act before the ink was dry. The corporate media is the unregulated voice of the corporations, free to spike or ignore stories and decide what views are presented as news. Flesh and blood citizens are regulated. How does giving a megaphone to the corporations re-establish the best interests of we the people?

All campaigns produce is information for distribution. If the media were to carry candidate and issue ads for free it would greatly reduce the influence of money in politics.

But Obama is predicted to raise a billion dollars and the Republicans 750 million. Campaign season is Christmas for the media and special interests.

[nothingchanges]

06:50 PM on 10/12/2011

Changing campaign finance will require an act of Congress.

The ones currently occupying that august body got there by a corrupt "pay for play" system of financing that is nothing short of legalized bribery.

What incentive do THEY have to make any changes?

For "Change we can believe in" to be more than a campaign slogan, will require new people, something neither major political party wants.

They've got it down to a science. Point fingers, blame the "other party" and get votes by saying "it's all their fault, If you don't elect me, and my party, the country will go down the tubes".

Meanwhile they both get the majority of their campaign money, from the same source.

Sing it............. out loud

"Sitting on your sofa on a Sunday afternoon"

"Listening to the Candidates debate........................."

"Laugh about it, shout about it, when you've got to choose"....................

"any way you look at it you lose"

[softvoice]

04:49 PM on 10/12/2011

Dylan Ratigan needs to explain to the American people that they are at least a little bit responsible for the fact that candidates have to go rich donors for money. If the American people truly want campaign finance reform, it means they are going to have to start donating on a regular basis to the candidates of their choice. Those who run for office cannot be expected to run a campaign with no money.

[Marcospinelli]

02:54 AM on 10/13/2011

The American people couldn't possibly compete financially with what corporations are spending.

[donttrustem]

02:30 PM on 10/12/2011

We need to go to a system of equal amounts of campaign funds for each race. Under the new rules, the current prez probably wouldn't have made it, but it keeps future politicians from buying the presidency.We also need to mandate a checkable paper ballot system, I'm sick of Diebold picking the winners.

[FormerlyTCnSRQ]

01:19 PM on 10/12/2011

when the big money is stopped in politics we might begin to actually get better politicians.

[Mickey1]

12:11 PM on 10/12/2011

Dylan keep up the good work. TYT