Citizens United for Free Speech

There is a movement to ban groups of people from contributing to election campaigns. Such a move is not only anti-freedom but is bound to have ruinous ripple effects.

 

On January 21, 2010, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United v. FEC that it is unconstitutional to restrict independent political expenditures by corporations, unions, and other associations such as political action committees (PACs).

 

According to Cenk Uygur, the host of the left-wing online news show The Young Turks, this ruling worsened the influence of moneyed interests in the American political system. Uygur announced the creation of Wolf PAC on October 19, 2011 during the Occupy Wall Street demonstration at Zucotti Park in New York City. Wolf PAC’s goal is “ending corporate personhood and publicly financing all elections in our country,” and placing restrictions on large monetary donations to political candidates, parties, and groups.

 

Wolf PAC plans to accomplish this by pushing for an amendment to the Constitution that would declare that corporations are not people and as such enjoy none of the Constitution’s protection of basic civil rights. Specifically, the Wolf PAC proposal looks to limit corporate campaign contributions by effectively overturning the Citizens United decision via a new amendment.

 

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