Too Little. Too Late: Dems Move to Stem Corporate Political Cash

[defendandprotect]

Democrats move to stem corporate political cash
Sun, Apr 25 2010
By Ross Colvin and Thomas Ferraro

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in Congress plan to unveil tough proposals this week to counter a Supreme Court ruling that allows corporations to spend unlimited amounts on elections.

President Barack Obama, who took the unusual step of publicly criticizing the ruling in his State of the Union address in January, has warned it will give corporations and special interest groups undue influence in elections.

The bill would require the leaders of corporations, unions and other groups to put their names on television ads and would ban election spending by government contractors, companies with more than 20 percent foreign ownership and recipients of taxpayer-funded bailout money.

"It is about restoring the proper balance. Certainly special interests have a right to be heard. The problem is when special interest voices drown out the voices of average Americans," a senior White House official told Reuters.

Democratic aides said they hoped to introduce the measure this week but acknowledged they face hurdles that could delay it becoming law until after congressional elections in November, when Republicans hope to shrink Democrats' majorities in the Senate and the House of Representatives.

The bill, if it is passed, is also likely to face legal challenges in the courts as opponents probe for loopholes to circumvent the spending restrictions. The country's biggest business group, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, signaled on Friday it would fight it.

"No matter what text you choose, if you're clear enough there is always a way around it, and if you try to be spongy with it to make sure there is no way around it, then it is really not clear the court will uphold it," said Joseph Birkenstock, a registered lobbyist and partner at Caplin & Drysdale in Washington.

White House officials have been working closely with Democratic lawmakers since Obama's State of the Union address to craft legislation.

"The framework is a strong one. We are pleased to be working with the Hill to answer the president's call for prompt action," the White House official said, when asked whether Obama backed the bill due to be introduced this week.

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We've near lost the planet and still we haven't nationalized the oil industry!