January 19, 2012
I am deeply concerned about the influence of corporate money on our electoral process.
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.
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.
ALSO: Should not companies that form and use the so-called "Superpacs" be required to outline in advance how, and to what extent, they are going to keep their operations separate from a particular candidate's knowledge, control, and operations?
Thank you for considering my comment.
James L. McCall
Dallas, TX