The Supreme Court's 5-4 decision on McCutcheon v. FEC is another blow to democracy
As if the Citizens United decision wasn’t bad enough. When I heard about the Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision on McCutcheon v. Federal Election Committee (FEC) this morning, my heart just sunk. I’ve already signed several petitions and done a lot of thinking about what these decisions mean for the United States of America.
Until today, an individual could not directly give more than $123,200 to political candidates and committees during any two-year election cycle. The amount was already so high that only a few hundred people reached it two years ago. Now, thanks to McCutcheon, a single donor will be able to give $3.6 million dollars in the same time span. The doors of political corruption have never been opened so wide.
The reasoning behind the McCutcheon Supreme Court decision was similar to the Citizens United case. The SCOTUS decided long ago that corporations are people under the law. The Citizens United ruling did one better by saying that money is equal to free speech and therefore should not be limited.
If corporations are people, and are able to contribute unlimited campaign contributions that do not need to be made public, I am gravely concerned. First off, corporations have international investors and shareholders. Anybody from any country, socialist, communist, dictatorships, entire countries that hold bonds from the U.S. can control our elections.
Dark money has completely eroded the Constitution. Free speech used to be reserved for what came out of our mouths, now it includes our wallets. Unfortunately, most of us can’t afford to speak with our bank accounts. Any time I hear a Republican or conservative who is obviously bought off say the word “freedom,” I know it means freedom for 1% of us. It seems everything domestic is being decimated in order to cater to the wealthy. The United States is turning into an overpopulated third world country that doesn’t have enough jobs.
It all starts with the Supreme Court. Ever since they crowned George W. Bush President, the dirty tricks just haven’t stopped. The Supreme Court of the United States has become the Corporate Court. In the last few years they have shielded corporations from liability, insulated corporate interests from environmental and antitrust regulations and of course they’ve put our elections up for sale.
A study’s by The Minnesota Law Review found that the two justices most likely to vote in favor of business interests since 1946 are the most recent conservative additions to the court, Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Samuel A. Alito, both appointed by President George W. Bush. All five of the current court’s more conservative judges were in the study’s top 10.
Our country is becoming an Oligarchy and I do not see it reversing without some sort of revolt. However, with local law enforcement now having military equipment including tanks, you have to wonder how a revolt would end.
An attorney friend of mine wrote this about the Supreme Court’s McCutcheon decision:
“This will mark the day that our country went into official free-fall and officially became an oligarchy. And I’m not exaggerating. Welcome to the United States of Corporate and Rich People America. The first time I visited the Supreme Court, I choked up because I naively believed that it was a symbol of what was right and good about America and stood for our ability to correct ourselves.”
“Every time I go to Washington DC now and walk by the Supreme Court I want to spit at it and I certainly won’t walk inside and visit. It is a symbol of what has been bought and paid for. This decision is just disgusting and everyone who isn’t a millionaire or billionaire – no matter the party with which you identify – should be outraged by this decision.”
“If you don’t want to bother to react and to try to change what will happen as a result of this decision, then I don’t want to hear a word from any of you as more and more of our rights are stripped away and the Constitution continues to be gutted in order to line the pockets of people who already have money. Not one single word. I am literally sickened by this decision. This is a very sad day for America and the news channels – ALL of them – have barely mentioned it.”
I think it is time to realize and admit that this country is not divided by Democrats or Republicans, but by the very wealthy and the rest of us.
