Everything Under The Sun: Bringing The Voting Voice Back To The People

Saturday, June 10, 2017

Bringing The Voting Voice Back To The People

One of the fundraising posters used to provide funds for Free Speech For People's litigation.

Ever since that day in January 2010 that the Supreme Court recognized corporations as people, free to contribute exorbitant amounts of money to political campaigns, various organization have formed to fight back, in various ways. One of those organizations is FREE SPEECH FOR PEOPLE.

Essentially, Free Speech For People exists to challenge corporate monetary power within politics, while trying to bring political power back to the people. The group is involved in legal advocacy, reducing the exemptions that corporations claim from the law, and developing ways to hold the corporate world accountable to the public.

Free Speech For People has been taking a lawsuit against ten Super PACs through the court system after the case, SpeechNow.org vs. FEC, in which the creation of super PACs was permitted, essentially putting even more money into the political system. Specifically, this lower court case decided that no limits could be imposed on these large independent political committees, because setting any limits would violate the free speech rights of wealthy donors.

In the belief that there was obvious vulnerability in the lower court decision, if it was taken into a higher court, Free Speech For People has pursued court cases, so there are various cases available for the highest court to review.

The first step was filing an administrative complaint with the Federal Election Committee (FEC), asking it to enforce the previous limits against super PACs. The goal was for the FEC to issue a ruling after the SpeechNow.org decision, so the case could then be brought before the Supreme Court. But what happened was that a decision was dragged out, essentially providing no on-the-record decision.

A meeting in Boston to discuss concerns of LGBTQ individuals.

As a result, the litigants then took the case to court to sue against the delay. Finally, the decision came down, affirming the SpeechNow.org decision of no limits on individual super PAC contributions. Now Free Speech For People can take that decision into the next higher court, on the way to reaching an ultimate decision by the Supreme Court.