The United States Supreme Court has ruled in the case of Citizens United vs. Federal Elections Commission. In a 5-4 decision along ideological lines, the court eased the long standing restrictions on corporate campaign spending with the net effect being unlimited campaign advertising by big companies.
Today, democracy in America died. OK, perhaps I am being overly dramatic. However, I am of the opinion that money equals speech. The more money you have, the more speech you have. The less money, the less speech. The data to back that up is substantial. So, assuming that for a moment, how would somebody like me ever compete against a corporation that has millions upon millions at their disposal?
To put this in perspective, assume I wanted to fight a company or special interest. Further assume that I wanted to get my message out on TV, Radio, and the Internet. After all, my adversary would be doing the same things and possibly more. However, even if I leveraged all my assets and available credit, I wouldn’t have even 1% of the funds my adversary would. Not even 1%. Let me put it another way; for every dollar I could possibly spend, they could spend $1,000,000 or more. That is a $1,000,000 to $1 advantage, minimum.
The plain and simple fact is that no individual, unless independently wealthy like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet, could ever fight a company or special interest. They would lose before they even got started. And, today, the United States Supreme Court just made that legal. Their ruling said, in essence, that the liberty a person has in this country is equal only to the size of their wallet. That is disgusting. What would the founding fathers say? And, how do true conservatives really feel about that?
You know, I feel like I am living through a nightmare. Sometimes, I like to think that if I could only wake up, it would be December of 2000 and Al Gore would be President-Elect. Speaking of the Bush v. Gore debacle, I remember when George W. Bush was sworn in like it was yesterday. I couldn’t sleep the night before. I had a terrible feeling that made me physically ill. It was the same feeling before and after we invaded Iraq. And now, I am getting it again. At what point are we, as Americans, not going to tolerate a handful of corrupt individuals ruining our country? The Republican Supreme Court Justices sold out in order to buy the 2010 election; and, a mere day after the voters in Massachusetts gave them a shot. That is outrageous. I hope and I pray that my fellow Americans will finally say enough is enough. I fear, however, that our apathy will once again stop us from doing that. Tonight, I weep for America.