NYT: The Court’s Blow to Democracy

[babylonsister]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/22/opinion/22fri1.html?hp

The Court’s Blow to Democracy

Published: January 21, 2010


With a single, disastrous 5-to-4 ruling, the Supreme Court has thrust politics back to the robber-baron era of the 19th century. Disingenuously waving the flag of the First Amendment, the court’s conservative majority has paved the way for corporations to use their vast treasuries to overwhelm elections and intimidate elected officials into doing their bidding.

Congress must act immediately to limit the damage of this radical decision, which strikes at the heart of democracy.

As a result of Thursday’s ruling, corporations have been unleashed from the longstanding ban against their spending directly on political campaigns and will be free to spend as much money as they want to elect and defeat candidates. If a member of Congress tries to stand up to a wealthy special interest, its lobbyists can credibly threaten: We’ll spend whatever it takes to defeat you.

The ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission radically reverses well-established law and erodes a wall that has stood for a century between corporations and electoral politics. (The ruling also frees up labor unions to spend, though they have far less money at their disposal.)

The founders of this nation warned about the dangers of corporate influence. The Constitution they wrote mentions many things and assigns them rights and protections — the people, militias, the press, religions. But it does not mention corporations.

snip//

In dissent, Justice John Paul Stevens warned that the ruling not only threatens democracy but “will, I fear, do damage to this institution.” History is, indeed, likely to look harshly not only on the decision but the court that delivered it. The Citizens United ruling is likely to be viewed as a shameful bookend to Bush v. Gore. With one 5-to-4 decision, the court’s conservative majority stopped valid votes from being counted to ensure the election of a conservative president. Now a similar conservative majority has distorted the political system to ensure that Republican candidates will be at an enormous advantage in future elections.

Congress and members of the public who care about fair elections and clean government need to mobilize right away, a cause President Obama has said he would join. Congress should repair the presidential public finance system and create another one for Congressional elections to help ordinary Americans contribute to campaigns. It should also enact a law requiring publicly traded corporations to get the approval of their shareholders before spending on political campaigns.

These would be important steps, but they would not be enough. The real solution lies in getting the court’s ruling overturned. The four dissenters made an eloquent case for why the decision was wrong on the law and dangerous. With one more vote, they could rescue democracy.

[shawcomm]

1. It needs to be done quickly

we need to push our reps and senators while there's an uproar about it, before the money starts flowing to them if possible.

"It should also enact a law requiring publicly traded corporations to get the approval of their shareholders before spending on political campaigns."

They should also make it so that every shareholder has an equal input. So if a person owns more than 50 percent of the shares, it doesn't mean that he gets the controlling decision of political spending. Everyone should have an equal say when it comes to spending the vast corporate money. We allow corporations to form to give them benefits of being in this country, there should be rules to benefit society back.

[Bluenorthwest]

2. John Roberts has spoken.

Your 'rights' are like mine, up for a vote by people who do not care about you. And people thought it was just gay people that got that treatment. Surprise!

[rhett o rick]

4. HEIL ROBERTS. nt

[rhett o rick]

3. Someone once said that fascism enters with small steps. On 1/21/10 it took one giant step.

Thanks to the bush* court.

[Raster]

5. Kick for Thomas Jefferson!

"I hope we shall... crush in its birth the aristocracy of our moneyed corporations which dare already to challenge our government in a trial of strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country."
:kick:

[Blue Meany]

6. The wall between politics and the suupreme court has also

been torn down. They have intervened in the most egregious ways in electoral politics and must now really be seen as a political branch of government. This being so, I see no reason not begin impeachment proceedings against those who intervened to allow Bush to take power. It was flagrantly political, unprincipled action and there is no reason now why politically-motivated impeachments ought not to take place. They changed the rules; they should no have to live by them.