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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsGet... Money... Out... Of... Politics...
How many of you have heard about Wolf-Pac ???
They've actually had a number of statehouses introduce this.
Seems the local state legislators are sick of the money dance, and are actually a lot more for Democracy than their National counter-parts.
Link: http://www.wolf-pac.com/
Take a look around.
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Never heard of it. | |
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Never heard of it. Never gonna happen. | |
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Never heard of it. It's got a shot. | |
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Thanks for turning me on to this. | |
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Heard of it. | |
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Heard of it. Never gonna happen. | |
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Heard of it. It's got a shot. | |
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I like money in politics. | |
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Willy really needs to take a statistics class or two. | |
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Get... Money... Out... Of... Politics... (Original Post)
WillyT
Nov 2013
OP
PETRUS
(3,678 posts)1. I think Louis Brandeis got it right:
"We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both."
Period.
WillyT
(72,631 posts)2. I Think So Too...

octoberlib
(14,971 posts)3. Have you heard of Lawrence Lessig and Rootstrikers.org?
It's a grassroots effort for campaign finance reform at the national level. I also found an article on Mother Jones about a meeting that was held in DC a couple months ago.
A little-known liberal group backed by the Democracy Alliance, the exclusive club of several hundred wealthy donors that funds an array of progressive causes, has adopted an unusual strategy to achieve its mission of ridding US politics of the corrupting influence of big money: raising and spending gobs of cash from undisclosed, wealthy political donors.
The group, the Fund for the Republic, recently laid out its plan for 110 donors, fundraisers, activists, and political operatives, who convened over two days in mid-September at the W Hotel in Washington, DC, for an invitation-only, closed-press gathering titled "Crony Democracy." Cohosted by the Democracy Alliance, the conference featured speakers and attendees including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, investor and progressive activist Jonathan Soros, ex-George W. Bush adviser Mark McKinnon, Stride Rite Corporation founder and major Democratic donor Arnold Hiatt, and Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's.
The event had a single goal: convincing well-heeled donors to invest in a $40 million "surge" to combat the flood of big money into American politics. That money, to be raised over five years, according to internal planning documents obtained by Mother Jones, will be funneled through the Fund for the Republic (FFR), a 501(c)(3) charity founded in September 2012. Nick Penniman, a progressive fundraiser who runs the fund and helped organize the "Crony Democracy" event, says his group will dole out those funds to groups involved in lobbying, grassroots advocacy, litigation, and electoral work aimed at strengthening ethics and campaign finance reform laws.
With an eye toward the 2014 and 2016 elections, AFR plans to fund groups working to defeat politicians who oppose campaign finance reformsuch as Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)and to elect supporters of the cause. Documents provided to Mother Jones say this political work will be funded "primarily" by AFR, which, as a so-called social-welfare group, can engage in electoral activity as long as these efforts don't eat up a majority of the group's money and time.
The group, the Fund for the Republic, recently laid out its plan for 110 donors, fundraisers, activists, and political operatives, who convened over two days in mid-September at the W Hotel in Washington, DC, for an invitation-only, closed-press gathering titled "Crony Democracy." Cohosted by the Democracy Alliance, the conference featured speakers and attendees including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, investor and progressive activist Jonathan Soros, ex-George W. Bush adviser Mark McKinnon, Stride Rite Corporation founder and major Democratic donor Arnold Hiatt, and Ben Cohen of Ben and Jerry's.
The event had a single goal: convincing well-heeled donors to invest in a $40 million "surge" to combat the flood of big money into American politics. That money, to be raised over five years, according to internal planning documents obtained by Mother Jones, will be funneled through the Fund for the Republic (FFR), a 501(c)(3) charity founded in September 2012. Nick Penniman, a progressive fundraiser who runs the fund and helped organize the "Crony Democracy" event, says his group will dole out those funds to groups involved in lobbying, grassroots advocacy, litigation, and electoral work aimed at strengthening ethics and campaign finance reform laws.
With an eye toward the 2014 and 2016 elections, AFR plans to fund groups working to defeat politicians who oppose campaign finance reformsuch as Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)and to elect supporters of the cause. Documents provided to Mother Jones say this political work will be funded "primarily" by AFR, which, as a so-called social-welfare group, can engage in electoral activity as long as these efforts don't eat up a majority of the group's money and time.
Mother Jones got a hold of the agenda from the meeting. It looks promising
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/09/democracy-alliance-fund-for-republic-40-million-surge-reform
WillyT
(72,631 posts)4. Yes... And They've All Met, Discussed, And Agreed...
That this HAS to be done... no matter the method.
This is just one of the methods.