Unhappy Anniversary, Citizens United

Today is the 4th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s infamous “Citizens United” decision.

Why should you care?

Watch the 2 1/2 minute video at…

http://unitedrepublic.actionkit.com/event/cosponsor/9815/

…http://unitedrepublic.actionkit.com/event/cosponsor/9815/ to get a sense of what money in politics is doing to us and to our government. I hope you’ll then decide you want to add your name as a Citizen Co-Sponsor of the American Anti-Corruption Act. I hope you’ll want to tell everyone to do the same.

After that, visit…

https://movetoamend.org/

…https://movetoamend.org/ to understand what a bunch of concerned citizens are doing to push for an amendment to our Constitution, “… to firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.”

You can sign their petition, too.

Sounds pretty easy, right? It doesn’t take a lot, and every voice counts.

Look, if you don’t do something, who will?

And if you decide to do nothing? That’s your choice, of course.

The way I see it, though, is people who won’t take action – any action – really don’t get to complain about money in politics or the Democrats or the Republicans or the size of government or the size of the military or voter ID laws or how the 2-party system keeps independents from running and winning or fracking or climate science or Roe v Wade or the minimum wage or right-to-work states or class warfare or corporate welfare or Wall Street bonuses and bail outs or George Soros or Sheldon Adelson or Donald Trump or Fox News or MSNBC or Glass-Steagall or the Gilded Age or Obamacare or the NRA or immigration reform or lots of other things that corrupt our representative democracy.

It all boils down to money, and unless and until we – you and I and everyone we know – does something – ANYTHING – to get money out of politics while we get out and vote in every election, well then we shouldn’t expect much to change for the better.

We can do this. You can do this. Why not do it right now?

 

People of Albany NY Speak Against NDAA – YouTube

Over 100 people showed up to stop the NDAA in Albany, NY October 5th, 2013. These are the powerful speeches that bent the council’s will to the people. Join …

Greg Russak‘s insight:

Everyone needs to watch this and share this video. Citizens making a difference!

Coffee Party friend and PANDA (http://pandaunite.org/) Event Coordinator, Bobby Rodrigo, introduces and also speaks, along with a broad coalition of concerned citizens, to the Albany City Council prior to their 11-0 vote on Oct 7, 2013, to nullify the indefinite detention provision of the National Defense Authorization Act.

 

“What was so wonderful about tonight was the cross-section of activist groups that showed up to support and to speak. Ideology was put aside for the common liberty goal, and to protect the first, the fifth, the sixth, and the fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution. The City of Albany and the Common Council, and particularly the sponsors of the bill led by Mr. <Anton> Konev <11th Ward Councilman>, should be commended not only for their work and what they did this evening, but as a shining light as to what needs to be done in the future by other government bodies”  – Bobby Rodrigo,  PANDA Event Coordinator

Also see http://pandaunite.org/ndaa-victory-new-york-capitol-unanimously-passes-anti-ndaa-resolution/

See on www.youtube.com

P1FD: Are We Living Up to Dr. King’s Dream? w ith Guest Host Greg Russak

See on Scoop.it – DidYouCheckFirst

Press [1] for Democracy (P1FD) is a Coffee Party Radio show that discusses the political issues of the day in a civil, fact-based, and transpartisan manner.

See on www.blogtalkradio.com

Bullying is for losers.

See on Scoop.it – DidYouCheckFirst

Greg Russak‘s insight:

We also all know this to be true, too. Hatred is learned behavior.

FEC votes on partisan lines not to punish Karl Rove’s Super-PAC for violations of law during 2010 election

See on Scoop.it – DidYouCheckFirst

by THOMAS CATAN, Wall S. Journal

Campaign-finance activists vowed to take the Federal Election Commission to court Thursday after it disregarded a finding by its staff that Crossroads GPS, conservative nonprofit backed by Karl Rove, likely broke campaign laws during the 2010 elections.
 

On Friday, the FEC quietly released a legal opinion by its staff lawyers that found that the “major purpose” of Crossroads GPS was to elect federal candidates, despite being registered as a “social-welfare” nonprofit group. The FEC’s general counsel recommended holding a formal investigation into the group.

 

However, the FEC decided not to take any action after a deadlocked 3-3 vote by its commissioners along party lines. On Thursday, that decision drew sharp criticism from campaign-finance activists.
 

“The rationale of the Republican bloc of commissioners is tortured and obstructionist,” said Craig Holman of Public Citizen, one of the groups that brought the original complaint. The groups said in a statement they plan a new suit that will argue the FEC’s dismissal of the case “was arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion and contrary to the law.” 

Crossroads GPS declined to comment on the FEC staff findings or the latest threat by campaigners to sue the election regulator. But it repeated earlier denials that it’s a political committee or mainly engaged in electioneering.
 

“I’m pleased that the Commission decided that GPS is not a political committee, and now we can move on from this politically-motivated complaint,” Tom Josefiak, general counsel to Crossroads GPS, said in an emailed statement.
 

If the FEC had decided to act on it and forced the group to register as a political committee, it might have had to disclose the identities of anonymous donors that contributed hundreds of millions of dollars to the Republican group.
 

Crossroads GPS “has spent nearly $100 million on election ads since 2010 without disclosing its donors,” said Paul Ryan, Senior Counsel at the Campaign Legal Center, which will also join the lawsuit against the FEC. “A ruling by the FEC that Crossroads GPS is a political committee would result in this disclosure for past and future elections.”
 

Social-welfare groups, known in the tax code as 501(c)(4) groups, aren’t supposed to make electioneering their primary activity.

But their use in campaigns has soared in the last two years, in part because they can accept donations of unlimited size and don’t have to disclose the names of their donors. [MORE]

Greg Russak‘s insight:

The American Anti-Corruption Act ensures this kind of corruption and abuse of the tax code ends. 

 

Become a Citizen Co-Sponsor at 

http://unitedrepublic.actionkit.com/event/cosponsor/9815/

See on blogs.wsj.com