Is US democracy being bought and sold?
How corporations, unions and political action committees are shaping the candidate pool.
Has money corrupted US politics beyond repair? The landmark Supreme Court case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission ruled that individuals working through corporations, unions, or independent political action committees, known as SuperPACs, could make unlimited campaign contributions. Now, candidates can depend on a handful of the wealthy in America to fund their campaigns even when they lack strong grassroots support.
In this episode of The Stream, we speak with Buddy Roemer, a Republican presidential candidate and former Governor of Louisiana, about the 2012 election. Also joining the show is Dylan Ratigan, host of The Dylan Ratigan Show and author of “Greedy Bastards.”
On February 1, Super PACs were required to disclose the identities and dollar amounts of those who contributed to them through the end of 2011. Restore Our Future, the Super PAC that supports Mitt Romney, has raised by far the greatest amount at $30.2 million. Winning Our Future, the Super PAC that supports Newt Gingrich, has raised $2.1 million through 2011. After the reporting period ended, however, the Super PAC received an additional $10 million from multi-billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson.
Karl Rove, former senior advisor and deputy chief of staff to former President George W. Bush, has a Super PAC named American Crossroads which raised $18.4 million in 2011. The Federal Election Commission files reveal that 10 billionaires contributed to the Super PAC. American Crossroads also has an affiliate organization called Crossroads GPS which does not disclose its donors.
more at link: http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/us-democracy-being-bought-and-sold-0022021
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