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Daily Beast: SOTU Sneak Peek: Obama to Hit Citizens United
Reportedly, another new initiative Obama is going to be announcing at tonight’s speech will attempt to rein in secret campaign money.
Many of President Obama’s policy priorities have been showcased, but he’s surely kept a few surprises to unveil in his State of the Union address Tuesday evening. Among them, sources say, is a major push to rein in the flood of secret money capturing our democracy and making a mockery of one-person, one-vote. With his approval rating now nudging 50 percent, Obama may be in the midst of a fourth-quarter comeback as he reclaims the high ground on his campaign promises and seeks to restore his credentials as an activist outsider shaking up Washington.
It was five SOTUs ago when Obama said the Supreme Court in its Citizens United ruling “reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests—including foreign companies—to spend without limits in our elections.” Cameras zeroed in on Justice Samuel Alito, seated directly in front of Obama in the House Chamber, mouthing the word “wrong.” Alito had voted with the majority the previous week in the Court’s 5-4 decision.
Thursday is the fifth anniversary of Citizens United, and reformers have been told that the president may announce executive action in his SOTU speech that would require businesses contracting with the government to disclose political contributions after contracts have been awarded. This would ensure that the contracting process is blind, but also give the public (and the media) the information needed to connect the dots to look for backroom deals or conflicts of interest.
This should be a no-brainer for anyone wondering how the wheels get greased for government contracts, and it will be a significant breakthrough in exposing the influence of campaign contributions whether or not Obama announces executive action in the SOTU itself, or in the days following. Republicans once supported disclosure, but since Citizens United opened up more vehicles for money given anonymously, the GOP has taken a hands-off approach. Democrats, who once opposed disclosure as not going far enough, are now its biggest advocates.
Many of President Obama’s policy priorities have been showcased, but he’s surely kept a few surprises to unveil in his State of the Union address Tuesday evening. Among them, sources say, is a major push to rein in the flood of secret money capturing our democracy and making a mockery of one-person, one-vote. With his approval rating now nudging 50 percent, Obama may be in the midst of a fourth-quarter comeback as he reclaims the high ground on his campaign promises and seeks to restore his credentials as an activist outsider shaking up Washington.
It was five SOTUs ago when Obama said the Supreme Court in its Citizens United ruling “reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests—including foreign companies—to spend without limits in our elections.” Cameras zeroed in on Justice Samuel Alito, seated directly in front of Obama in the House Chamber, mouthing the word “wrong.” Alito had voted with the majority the previous week in the Court’s 5-4 decision.
Thursday is the fifth anniversary of Citizens United, and reformers have been told that the president may announce executive action in his SOTU speech that would require businesses contracting with the government to disclose political contributions after contracts have been awarded. This would ensure that the contracting process is blind, but also give the public (and the media) the information needed to connect the dots to look for backroom deals or conflicts of interest.
This should be a no-brainer for anyone wondering how the wheels get greased for government contracts, and it will be a significant breakthrough in exposing the influence of campaign contributions whether or not Obama announces executive action in the SOTU itself, or in the days following. Republicans once supported disclosure, but since Citizens United opened up more vehicles for money given anonymously, the GOP has taken a hands-off approach. Democrats, who once opposed disclosure as not going far enough, are now its biggest advocates.
Three guesses who just happens to have multi-million dollar contracts with the Department of Defense? The federal-government-hating Koch Brothers, that's who! They have tens of millions of dollars in defense contracts with the federal government, and so does Rushie-boy Limbaugh. He has a federal government contract that allows his hate-fest-show to be broadcast on the American Forces Network.
I'm really liking this president!
8 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
Sorry. I momentarily lapsed into Perpetually Petulant mode.
