November 6, 2013
SEC Comment file 4-637
Dear Comment file 4-637,
I am deeply concerned about the influence of corporate money on our electoral process. Corporations currupt the democratic process in very important way. I speak as a Harvard MBA and a former professor at Harvard Business School and Sloan School of Management. To borrow the famous phrase, corporations have no heart and no memory -- importantly, they also have no grandchildren. They are necessarily focused on today's -- this quarter's -- profit report, not on the survival of their communities, their country, or their planet.
In particular, I am appalled that, because of the Supreme Court's ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, publicly traded corporations can spend investor's money on political activity in secret. We have now seen conclusively that this decision is having disastrous results -- possibly even undermining the fabric of this precious democracy.
I am writing to urge the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue a rule requiring publicly traded corporations to publicly disclose all their political spending.
Both shareholders and the public must be fully informed as to how much the corporation spends on politics and which candidates are being promoted or attacked. Disclosures should be posted promptly on the SEC's web site.
Thank you for considering my comment and, hopefully, making decisions that protect our democracy and our country.
Sincerely,
Marcie Tyre