April 18, 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. While I comprehend the Court is saying they should uphold the letter of the law, this certainly violates the spirit. Therefore, please follow the Court's lead and create a law which includes both the spirit and the letter.
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. This is little different than requiring your investment advisor to make public any financial interests which would effect how they handle your money, a system which was ripe for abuse until you stood up and created a law including the letter and the spirit after the Courts struck down the applicability of the existing law at the time.
Thank you for considering my comment.
Michael O'Brien
Boyne Falls, MI