Millions More to Flood Campaign Coffers

If you're a Member of the House or Senate and don't do something serious to begin distancing yourself from special interest money and the influence it has on your votes, our country will continue in a downward spiral and you'll probably have to look for a new job. Whether you are willing to admit it or not, your votes are heavily influenced by the very campaign contributions you seek.

For those who don't think there's enough money in politics, you must be celebrating the recent Supreme Court decision to allow unlimited campaign spending by corporations, unions, millionaires and billionaires. If you're celebrating, here are some suggestions:

First, file papers to form several new corporations. To protect Democratic incumbents, form the "The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Corporation" and the "Democratic Congressional Campaign Corporation." Republicans, feel free to copy those names, inserting "Republican" where appropriate.

Once your partisan corporation is formed, Senators and Congressman can drop by corporations all across America who are ready for a private meeting in their boardrooms. While giving them your vote, feel free to ask for a million or two for your new partisan campaign corporation. Remind them there are no limits -- on your votes or on the amount of money they can give. Don't forget to stop by your favorite union or the US Chamber of Commerce. In light of the unlimited money provision, they'll want a little more access too.

The best part of all of this, you'll no longer have to spend time at home raising money. We know how you hate dealing with all those pesky voters.

For those who aren't celebrating the Supreme Court decision and find the idea of hundreds of millions of new dollars influencing your votes, join the chorus of reformers who believe that public financing is the only way to curb the influence of money in politics. The Fair Elections Now Act has nearly 140 House co-sponsors. It's a bi-partisan bill that limits contributions to $100. And for every $100 you raise in your state, you will receive a match of $400 in public funds. You'll be spending more time in your states working with your constituents and a lot less time begging for money from people you've never met before in corporate board rooms from one coast to the other.

It's high time Congress wakes up. A large majority of the American people believe that your vote is influenced by the special interest money you accept every day. Get behind reform and take the special interest money out of politics now, before the price of political retribution skyrockets beyond control.

 

Comments

[jimpager]

10:13 AM on 02/09/2010

This is the worst and most damaging supreme court decision of my life & I'm over 60. Why have government at all? Why not have the US Chamber of Commerce run America? And if corporatio­ns are equal to people under the law, and I am a people, and I pay 30% marginal tax rates, why don't corporatio­ns pay 30% marginal tax rates? Oh. They're more equal than me...and you.

When the corporatio­ns realize they can bribe EVERY politician and not just some politician­s, it then becomes a capital budgeting decision as to how much they want to govern America. We've learned from the health care debate that blue dog Democrats will defeat the public option for about two million per Senator (actually I rounded up, they're somewhat cheaper than that). There are 100 Senators and 400+ Representa­tives. Thus, the Chamber of Commerce needs to buy themselves 75 Senators for ~150 million to BLOCK legislatio­n every six years. But rather than just block government intrusion into their corrupt private market, now corporatio­ns can proactivel­y put out their own Legislated Corporate Agenda and force it down America's throat. Let's say Corporatio­ns need to buy themselves 300 representa­tives to own the house every two years. That's $600 million. Spread the 150 million to buy the Senate over two year increments and that would be $50 every two years to also control the Senate. So the cost of buying the United States government is $650 million every two years. That's a terrific deal...

[jimpager]

10:30 AM on 02/09/2010

So $650 million every two years means I need to invest $325 million each year to own America.

Why is this a good deal for corporatio­ns? Let me count the ways...

1) No more consumer protection laws.
2) No more environmen­tal protection laws.
3) I can quit paying my health care obligation­s to my retirees.
4) I can quit paying my retirees pension benefits.
5) I can eliminate taxes, whatsover, on the rich.
6) I can eliminate taxes, whatsoever­, on corporatio­ns.
7) I can authorize taxpayer expenditur­es to fun my research and developmen­t.
8) I can authorize taxpayer expenditur­es to buy my capital equiment.
9) I can authorize taxpayer expenditur­e to cover my operating expenses.
10) I can mandate that the population must buy my insurance products.
11) No more personal bankruptcy laws.
12) I can order the military to insure my business agenda throughout the world.
13) I can eliminate social security, medicare and medicaid so there are more tax receipts for my corporate agenda.
14) I can also bribe the Supreme Court..aft­er all, it is they who have allowed me, as a corporatio­n, to be so equal under the law. As a people, and not a corporatio­n, wouldn't you really like to have a supreme court in your back pocket?

[jimpager]

10:52 AM on 02/09/2010

I'm sorry, I forgot some...

15) I can outlaw labor unions and criminaliz­e oraganizin­g activities­.
16) I can set interest rates on loans (used to be 17% was considered loansharki­ng-the Credit card companies, using taxpayer money, are already loaning taxpayer credit to you in excess of 20% return to them).
17) Did I forget, I can mandate myself access to any public land? Drill baby drill. To hell with the environmen­t.
18) Why is there any government regulation of business at all? Indeed, lets get rid of regulation and lower the cost of government­.
19) Why are we spending all this money on education?
20) Why not eliminate worker protection laws?
21) Can we import migrant laborers to work for next to nothing?

Enough for today. I'll think of some more good things government will do for corporatio­ns tomorrow. But corporate thanks again to the Supreme Court...

[C Pollard]

03:36 PM on 02/08/2010

Um, corporatio­ns have the right to speech. You can't make that illegal with a campaign finance law. You have to change the constituti­on.

[rosiebond007]

06:02 PM on 02/08/2010

Or get the Supreme Court to re-read it's mandate and reverse this travesty.

They could actually ..........­. go Sonia S

[Paul Silver]

01:35 PM on 02/08/2010

I have been arranging the delivery to Texas Congresspe­ople Moveon and Common Cause petitions signed by hundreds of their constituen­ts. 99+% of the people who agree that this is a problem with a solutions are not doing anything to help persuade their congresspe­ople or local candidates­. Contact Common Cause, Public Citizen, Moveon, League of Women Voters, Public Campaign, Change Congress, Democracy Matters...­.Do something!

[wikwox]

01:30 PM on 02/08/2010

We don't believe Contributi­ons "influence­" politician­s, it pays for thier vote. In short most people think the vast majority of politician­s are corrupt to some degree. A fine example was the way Big Pharma was able to stop drug re-importa­tion from Canada before it ever came to a vote.Nice! Typical!

[blacktea]

12:41 PM on 02/08/2010

This is like Bernie Madoff writing an article on business ethics.

[Countess]

12:30 PM on 02/08/2010

This is one area where there is bipartisan support for keeping the corrupt system in place.

[billyboil]

12:10 PM on 02/08/2010

americans sneer at countries like Afghanista­n, alleging corruption­, when in fact america's whole system of govt, at all levels, works the same way!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!

[whyworry]

12:04 PM on 02/08/2010

Reform NOW! The Conservati­ve Justices failed us. Unless refoem is done; our votes won't mean a thing! It's already moving towards that. Just look at how Republican­s and Blue Dogs are responding to our crisis.

[muck-raker]

10:54 AM on 02/08/2010

great article, it is time to expose these thieves. looking at the following numbers it is easy to see that this man and many others will never vote to give taxpayers a break
Top Industries
Senator Mitch McConnell 2005 - 2010


Select cycle and data to include:

2010200820­0620042002­20001998Ca­reer Campaign Cmte Only
Leadership PAC Profile Only
Campaign Cmte & Leadership PAC Combined


Top 20 Industries contributi­ng to Campaign Cmte and Leadership PAC
Industry Total Indivs PACs
Securities & Investment $1,236,024 $962,525 $273,499
Lawyers/La­w Firms $986,383 $738,683 $247,700
Retired $906,305 $906,305 $0
Real Estate $825,880 $593,880 $232,000
Health Profession­als $802,500 $510,100 $292,400
Insurance $726,283 $261,783 $464,500
Lobbyists $658,255 $642,014 $16,241
Pharmaceut­icals/Heal­th Products $616,985 $166,000 $450,985
Republican­/Conservat­ive $520,358 $468,308 $52,050
Oil & Gas $498,350 $263,650 $234,700
Commercial Banks $480,950 $268,950 $212,000
Hospitals/­Nursing Homes $446,250 $258,550 $187,700
Pro-Israel $415,710 $304,200 $111,510
General Contractor­s $371,421 $279,421 $92,000
Leadership PACs $368,744 $0 $368,744
Misc Finance $364,534 $322,534 $42,000
TV/Movies/­Music $312,900 $154,400 $158,500
Misc Business $311,050 $289,550 $21,500
Misc Manufactur­ing & Distributi­ng $308,550 $196,550 $112,000
Computers/­Internet
.