Will Montana Judges be for Sale? Posted on September 17, 2014 (September 25, 2014) Retired Montana Supreme Court Justice and Free Speech For People legal advisory committee member, James Nelson writes to the Independent Record on whether or not Montana’s court and judges will be forced “onto the auction block.” Nelson writes of the role of money in politics in a post-Citizens United era, and explains “there is no reason to believe it won’t happen in Montana’s upcoming elections for judges and justices.”Read More
A Small Step Forward in Ridding Politics of Big Money Posted on September 15, 2014 (September 26, 2014) To some, the U.S. Senate killing the Democracy For All Amendment may look like defeat, but to grassroots groups, the vote itself marks a victory. The U.S. Senate is listening to the people. Senators spent nearly a week debating the amendment, 54 voted for it, and the amendment was just six votes short of passing. Momentum to restore democracy to the people has been gained, not lost. Read More
The Senate Tried to Overturn ‘Citizens United’. Guess What Stopped Them? Posted on September 12, 2014 (September 26, 2014) A majority of senators voted Thursday for the Democracy For All Amendment “to clarify in the Constitution that Congress and the states have the authority to do what they did for a century before activist judges began intervening on behalf of wealthy donors and corporations: enact meaningful campaign finance rules and regulations.” That’s the good news, says today’s piece in The Nation. Read More
Live from New York, it’s . . . Ted Cruz? via Ron Fein Posted on September 12, 2014 (September 26, 2014) Free Speech For People Legal Director, Ron Fein heads to “The Daily Caller” to debunk claims made by Senator Ted Cruz during this week’s Senate debate on the Democracy For All Amendment.Read More
Money in Politics and the ‘Real’ Issues We Face Posted on September 12, 2014 (September 26, 2014) Democracy Amendments Marge Baker, Executive Vice President for Policy and Program, People For the American Way & People For the American Way Foundation is featured today on The Huffington Post speaking of the ‘real’ issues we face following this week’s Senate vote. Read More
Free Speech For People Statement on the Senate Vote Posted on September 11, 2014 (March 31, 2015) The United States Senate engaged in an historic vote on the Senate floor on the Democracy For All Amendment (S.J. Res. 19), which would allow for overall campaign spending limits and would end the big money dominance of our elections. Fifty-four US Senators voted in support of the amendment.Read More
The Senate Just Voted to Keep Big Money in Politics. Here Are Three Reasons to Celebrate Anyway. Posted on September 11, 2014 (September 26, 2014) Today, the US Senate voted to keep big money in politics. The Democracy For All Amendment fell short of receiving the 67 votes it necessary to pass, but not all is lost. Fran Korten of YES! Magazine explains, “the fact that the issue reached the Senate floor is a huge victory for the American people, who overwhelmingly say they want something done about corporate influence in elections.” Read More
Democrats Embrace ‘McCutcheon’ Decision Posted on August 29, 2014 (August 4, 2015) Despite ongoing criticism of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in McCutcheon v. FEC, Senate Democrats now embrace a big-money fundraising tool, made possible by the court’s decision. The new “jumbo” fundraising committee of choice for Democrats is the Grassroots Victory Project 2014, and it’s their first major entry into the realm of massive campaign contributions.Read More
Free Speech For People has filed an amicus brief in New York Republican State Committee v. SEC Posted on August 29, 2014 (April 23, 2015) Free Speech For People has filed an amicus brief in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in support of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s anti-“pay-to-play” rule for investment advisers, which prevents investment advisers from receiving management fees from public funds when they’ve given political contributions to the elected officials who influence theRead More
A Look at 2014 Election Spending: Nine Toss-Up Senate Races Posted on August 20, 2014 (August 20, 2014) Control of the US Senate is at play in the 2014 election, which means tight races and tremendous spending from outside groups. Outside spending in the top nine Senate races in 2014 is almost equal to spending in all 37 races in 2010. Half of the independent spending in the top nine races comes fromRead More