A RISING TSUNAMI OF CORPORATE POLITICAL MONEY

Jim Hightower's Radio Lowdown

A RISING TSUNAMI OF CORPORATE POLITICAL MONEY

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Here they come. The corporate front groups are moving fast – the ones that the Supreme Court unleashed on America’s elections by decreeing that corporations are now free to spend unlimited sums of cash from their vast treasuries to elect or defeat anyone they want.

You might recall that the five-man judicial majority that pulled off this black-robed coup argued disingenuously that there was no evidence that corporate spending would even increase under the court’s ruling, much less flood the process. Nice theory, but – look out! – here comes the flood.

In addition to unfathomable sums that corporations will pour directly into this fall’s congressional elections, they are also channeling unparalleled amounts of cash into assorted front groups. For example, in 2008, a presidential year, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce put $36 million into elections, which was the most ever by a corporate organization. This year it intends to more than double that, funneling $75 million into campaigns, with practically every penny going to corporate-hugging Republicans.

American Crossroads, a new corporate outlet run by former Bush operative Karl Rove, collected more than $8 million in June alone and expects to put $52 million into this year’s elections. Various extremist laissez-faire, anti-government groups will also add to the rising tsunami, including $45 million from Americans for Prosperity, $25 million from American Action Network, $24 million from The Club for Growth, and $5 million from Freedom Works.

With such gross levels of spending, moneyed corporations intend to overpower America’s democratic process and purchase a government that’ll do their bidding. To stop them, we must overturn the Supreme Court’s malicious, anti-democratic ruling. To help, connect with a grassroots campaign pushing to overturn. Find them at www.freespeechforpeople.org.