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The Rise of Secret Campaign Donors

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Posted on May 21, 2011
Move to Amend

Members of a group bent on getting corporations out of politics take part in a protest last year in Wellfleet, Mass.

A growing number of political campaign contributors are bypassing the Federal Election Commission entirely, secretly donating large sums of money right under the nose of the toothless organization. Private donors are bankrolling large advertising campaigns and stocking candidates’ campaign coffers while hiding behind non-party-affiliated political groups. And after the Supreme Court last year removed limits on corporate political spending, watchdogs say that any semblance of campaign finance regulation and transparency is quickly dissolving. Some democracy, huh?  —KDG 

Bloomberg:

Non-party groups, including the secretive ones, are already planning to raise more money in the 2012 elections. They received a boost from the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United case last year, which for the first time allowed corporations and unions to spend unlimited amounts on ads advocating the election or defeat of a candidate.

The organizations face little scrutiny from the FEC, where split votes between Republican and Democratic commissioners have stymied enforcement in case after case for almost three years.

As a result, voters may find themselves choosing the next U.S. president knowing less about those trying to shape their views of the candidates than they have since secret money helped finance the Watergate burglary and re-elect President Richard Nixon in 1972. Watergate led to his resignation and ushered in the law that created the FEC. Investigators found more than $20 million had been given behind the scenes to Nixon’s campaign.

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By Nozferatu, May 21, 2011 at 10:51 pm Link to this comment

Clearly you have a hard time grasping “organization” and even lesser understanding of money is king.

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By OzarkMichael, May 21, 2011 at 9:51 pm Link to this comment

Nozferatu said: “If even 40$ of the people in this country donated a mere $20 each,...

That would mean you had two people who gave $20 each. Nozferatu continues:

...,we’d be able to completely obliterate the lobbyists for these campaigns or oil company crooks, etc….

Who exactly they gave the 40$ to is unclear. What the person who took the 40$ is going to do with it is hazy. How it will obliterate anything is unknown.

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By Nozferatu, May 21, 2011 at 9:03 pm Link to this comment

If the crooks can make secretive contributions to make buy off the people who work for them, then so can the general public.

If people only realized how much power they really have monetarily.

If even 40$ of the people in this country donated a mere $20 each, we’d be able to completely obliterate the lobbyists for these campaigns or oil company crooks, etc….

No will, no success…end of story.

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By Fat Freddy, May 21, 2011 at 10:36 am Link to this comment

Reason.tv: 3 Reasons Not to Sweat Citizens United

http://reason.com/blog/2010/02/03/reasontv-3-reasons-not-to-swea

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By TDoff, May 21, 2011 at 10:14 am Link to this comment

As of now, even the facades of the concepts of ‘Democracy’ and ‘The Value of YOUR Vote’, are dead.

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By TDoff, May 21, 2011 at 10:10 am Link to this comment

It would be interesting to determine how much TARP and ‘Bail Out’ money has ended up in the political coffers of the US Chamber of Commerce and it’s members. And whether the Wall Street and lesser moguls and their firms take a ‘brokerage’ fee or charge ‘interest’ on the money they secretly donate.

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By TDoff, May 21, 2011 at 10:03 am Link to this comment

It will not surprise when the scandal breaks that Lil’ Timmy Geithner has been looting the US Treasury to make secret billion-dollar ‘contributions’ to the GOPer/TP party…which party, of course, favors looting the US Treasury. Up to now, they’ve been mainly doing it with massive tax breaks for themselves and their owners.

But this direct raiding of the vaults opens a whole new ball game. I sure hope they catch Lil’ Timmy soon. It would do US good to watch him make a ‘perp’ walk (he’s a ‘perp’ if ever there was one), and maybe spend a night in detention.

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By gerard, May 21, 2011 at 9:57 am Link to this comment

Memorable quote from the article:

“Obama is considering an executive order that could undercut these predictions (of elections for sale)and reduce secrecy. It would mandate disclosure of political contributions over $5,000 a year by any company vying for a federal contract, according to a draft reviewed by Bloomberg News. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which collects secret money for political ads, has vowed to fight it.”

It’s only a small start, but better than nothing.
Campaign Finance Reform—the sooner, the better.

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