April 29, 2012
Dear members of the Securities and Exchange Commission:
Perhaps the most basic of all our founding principles is "one person, one vote" -- the assurance that every American is equal in the voting booth. Campaign funding by corporations and the rich have long violated that principle and held undue influence over our elections. Now Citizens United allows them to do it legally, anonymously, and to an unlimited extreme.
This is antithetical to everything our Constitution stands for. It's a blatantly partisan act by a Court stacked with rightwing justices who do not deserve the title. It must be overturned -- but in the meantime, the SEC has the power to at least require these huge corporate donors to show their faces. I urge you 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 immediately on the SEC's web site, so voters and consumers can see who's buying influence over our elections, and respond appropriately.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Carol Kerns