Rep. Deutch Introduces OCCUPIED Constitutional Amendment To Ban Corporate Money In Politics

reply to post by LazyGuy


Thanks for posting this - I think the bill's intent is good, hopefully it can close loopholes and gain traction as well.

Personally, besides the control factor with the money, I can only imagine it's one huge laundering scheme for many.

'doogoodygoodbullllshirt'

If they bill were to be passed then we would knew once and for all that the elected officials do work for us. But i highly doubt that's the case.

Originally posted by tkwasny

Unless every cent for every candidate regardless of the party affiliation comes from the SAME publically funded pool of money, each getting the exact same amount as an opponent, there will be political favors, paybacks, smokey back room deals, graft, corruption, earmarks, etc.

IF change were to happen (that's a big IF) things would be good for a while. Unfortunately, the political favors, paybacks, smokey back room deals, graft, corruption, earmarks, etc... would slowly creep back in as politicians learned how to work the system.

Jesus said, "every man (and woman) has sinned."
That goes double for lawyers.
And TRIPLE for politicians since most of them are not only human but also lawyers.

Candidates cannot use a cent of their own money. Maybe there will be other politicians other than rich.

A politician has to be capable. They have to have proven themselves in some way. Unfortunately, being rich suggests being capable.

Course when it's all REALLY daddy's money, and Jr. has been coddled and sheltered from the world and his own mistakes he can can still become President. Little Georgie is proof.

reply to post by LazyGuy



These are drafts of a couple of proposals from get the money out dot org.
I think they are reasonable and cannot believe it has come to the point where an entire political party can be purchased for a price and the likes of GE has gained personhood and I have to share with them.

"No person, corporation or business entity of any type, domestic or foreign, shall be allowed to contribute money, directly or indirectly, to any candidate for Federal office or to contribute money on behalf of or opposed to any type of campaign for Federal office. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, campaign contributions to candidates for Federal office shall not constitute speech of any kind as guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution or any amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Congress shall set forth a federal holiday for the purposes of voting for candidates for Federal office."

"Section 1. We the people who ordain and establish this Constitution intend the rights protected by this Constitution to be the rights of natural persons. Section 2. People, person, or persons as used in this Constitution does not include corporations, limited liability companies or other corporate entities established by the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign state, and such corporate entities are subject to such regulation as the people, through their elected state and federal representatives, deem reasonable and are otherwise consistent with the powers of Congress and the States under this Constitution. Section 3. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to limit the people's rights of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, free exercise of religion, and such other rights of the people, which rights are inalienable."

"The People’s Rights Amendment, which (John Bonifaz) and Free Speech For People advocate, would overturn the US Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. FEC and would ensure that people, not corporations, govern in America."

reply to post by LazyGuy


ALRIGHT!

S&F& ... so GOOD to hear. May this little virus flourish, spread and infect the world.

reply to post by LazyGuy


This is a step in the right direction. Corporate interests are not the same as the interests of the people, especially when corporations get very big and would rather have a population of slaves for profit then a population of happy individuals. Lately, corporations have had a much bigger say than people in what happens in America.

Think about it - why would corporations need to bribe public officials if what they wanted was in the best interest of the people?

reply to post by LazyGuy


Sounds like someone's trying to hold their seat. Too bad this will likely backfire on the poor sod. The unions want the corporate lobby out, the corporate lobby wants the unions out, and the voter thinks that he can't compete with the money of either. This is inevitable when there are equally monied interests with opposing philosophical positions.

A step in the right direction.

Together with removing 'lobbying' (bribe) money, from both Corporations and Unions, the media has to be forced to give, for free, EQUAL air time for all candidates in the run up to an election, as part of their license conditions.

Next will be to remove the Pharmaceutical 'lobby' (bribery) financing of doctors and of health service / medical research and medical practices, to ensure that research and medical innovation is based on efficacy and benefit to the patient, rather than profitability for corporations.

reply to post by beezzer


Beezer I certainly thought you were a Fascist, but maybe I was wrong!

When we allowed unfair competition to kill the mom and pop operation we sanctioned the end of the American dream. We sacrificed American jobs for outsourced labor, we sacrificed American quality for Cheap Chinese imports etc… We have allowed it to become impossible to tell the difference between elected officials and concentrated capital in this country.

You can take it to the bank that monopolistic systems and unfair completion have cost many more American jobs than they have ever provided. In this Wal-Mart nation any moneys we throw at our broken economy just ends up in Chinese coffers!

I have a friend in China that I visit from time to time. The Chinese earn an equivalent wage they just work an 80-90 hour weeks to do so. The Chinese enjoy the highest quality products, Chinese laws require all products be covered by warranty even. We Americans enjoy the lowest quality cheapest products on planet Earth because our fellow Coroporate Americans choose to pawn the products off on us and call it a discount. Profits are high selling crap vs American quality.

Benito Mussolini said that Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power.

Money in politics is at the heart of all Govermental corruption!

reply to post by Ittabena

(Then what are birth certificates for.)

Birth certificates create a corporation in your name, instant slavery. When your name is in all-capitals on a birth certificate, SIN, drivers license etc. it represents you the corporation, not you the natural person.


Natural-Person

Get the money out! Publicly financed elections! I fully support this amendment along with ending corporate personhood. What a tremendous step this would be and if passed would make the Occupy people's movement a success.

Then if we could manage a constitutional amendment that would abolish the fed I believe those 2 steps would go a long way in taking back our republic from the criminals who currently run the show. Boy the media are sure going to be unhappy about losing the billions in ad revenue!

Originally posted by Fitch303
+Ban Union contributions and I think the bill would be just swell.

I agree with this.

The system has become totally corrupted by money.

We need to get all money out of the system aside from the individual contributions that are already and rightfully limited.

If we don't - we shall continue to deserve everything we get.

reply to post by LazyGuy


They should have gone a step further and said no pensions, and politicians get to pay for their own benefits too.

Basically politicians should get exactly what the average person wages, and benefits, so they are living in the same world as the majority.

Can I get a HELL YEAH!!!

It's not much, but it's a start... even though if it gets voted on it will be vetoed...

First we need to vote out all the free market preaching politicians, before any progress will ever go forward.

We don't need compromise, we need to get rid of the people whose only goal is to turn over all power in this country to corporations.

This is one of our principle and chief demands, to ban corporate money in our democratic process!

Finally! Hope this passes Committee to go before the Full House for a vote and then on to the Senate where hopefully Obama will sign it.

Still think we have no demands huh?

Great bill! Don't think it'll pass, but that just shows that people need to keep up putting pressure on the government to act...eventually they'll have to cave in

Vote the people who don't support the bill out of office.

Stop electing people who want government to fail.

reply to post by ladykenzie

Outlawing Corporate Cash Undermining the Public Interest in our Elections and Democracy (OCCUPIED) Amendment, would overturn the Citizens United decision, re-establishing the right of Congress and the states to regulate campaign finance laws

Do not let that wording fool you. Look at the track record of congress and state oversight to see just how we got where we are now. They were selling us out faster than anyone could pay them off. A lot of scandals arose from just that and hence why the changes that came about through the Citizens United decision.

It's time for something new. The old ways and the new ways have failed.

reply to post by tkwasny


Exactly, it needs to be centralized and amended without the ability for congress and state reps as well as non-profit etc as well as corporate interests having any sway on the matter whenever they fell like it. Iron clad or it's a waste of time.