End Corporate Money in Politcs

American elections should not be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests

Under the current system, powerful interests decide who will have the money to get on the ballot and run a credible campaign. Voters are left with fewer choices and candidates more accountable to their large donors than constituents.

Background

“Today’s outside spending groups act as megaphones for moguls and millionaires.  The more money they pump in, the louder they’re able to amplify their voices –until a few wealthy individuals and interests are dominating our public square, drowning out the middle and working classes” - Adam Lioz, Demos

In 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court threw out six decades of established law by granting corporations the right to use their incredible wealth and power to influence elections.
The tortured legal argument is that we're infringing on a corporation's right to free speech by limiting the money it can spend on political attack ads. But giving corporations this right could fundamentally change our democracy.

The impact and the stakes in this fight are hard to overstate. If this had been the law of the land in 2008, ExxonMobil alone could have outspent President Obama's campaign almost sixty times over.

Imagine how much more difficult the fights for health care and Wall Street reform would have been if Blue Cross Blue Shield or Bank of America had secretly poured millions into the campaigns of their favored candidates.

NJPIRG Students is calling for a constitutional amendment that would overturn the Citizens United decision and staunch the flow of unlimited spending by moneyed special interests.  Obviously, we don’t take calling for a constitutional amendment lightly, but the strength of our democracy relies on people voting not corporations, so we think it’s an important thing to fight for.  We’re working to pass resolutions at the student government and municipal level to show overwhelming support for a democracy of the people, not of corporate money.