No cap on corporate election spending? Yes say majority of Americans

[SoftLion]

PRINCETON, NJ -- Americans' broad views about corporate spending in elections generally accord with the Supreme Court's decision Thursday that abolished some decades-old restrictions on corporate political activity. Fifty-seven percent of Americans consider campaign donations to be a protected form of free speech, and 55% say corporate and union donations should be treated the same way under the law as donations from individuals are. At the same time, the majority think it is more important to limit campaign donations than to protect this free-speech right.

More (http://www.gallup.com/poll/125333/Public-Agrees-Court-Campaign-Money-Free-Speech.aspx)

Interesting article. The recent Citizens United case is an interesting decision going to the core of just what is covered as free speech under the 1st Amendment. I was surprised by the decision.

[budgie]

It'll simply open the door wider to corporate takeovers of the government. As if they didn't have enough pull already. It's nice to think that could be balanced out by unions but I'd imagine corporations have more money on the whole.

[msnger]

Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,023 national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted Oct. 1-2, 2009, as part of Gallup Daily tracking. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points.

that's a big sample.

[SoftLion]

It'll simply open the door wider to corporate takeovers of the government. As if they didn't have enough pull already. It's nice to think that could be balanced out by unions but I'd imagine corporations have more money on the whole.


that's a big sample.

Holy ****, I agree with both of you. Picture or it didn't happen.

[Byrdalak]

I've not found a single person who approved of it. I consider this poll highly suspect.

[SoftLion]

I've not found a single person who approved of it. I consider this poll highly suspect.

Regardless of whether I might agree with your statement, where did you go looking?

[davey]

It's a sad day. The citizenry will have diminishing influence now. Their only remaining duty will be to get the politicians elected. Thereafter they will be discarded and the biggest donors among the big corporations will rule the roost more than ever before. You, as citizens, won't ever be able to change that law governing election spending. It's too late. How did this happen? Complacency by the citizenry? A blatant disregard of their rights?

[Byrdalak]

Regardless of whether I might agree with your statement, where did you go looking?

Friends, family and co workers. It's good enough for me.


Complacency by the citizenry?

Exactly.

[tea drinker]

Either there's something wrong with my reading comprehension or the article. Doesn't this section say the opposite of the headline?


At the same time, the majority think it is more important to limit campaign donations than to protect this free-speech right.

[Noons86]

I'm very surprised at those poll results. In a time when many people are upset at the current administration for continuing the bailout policy while jobs continue to be lost (one of the reasons the Democrats aren't doing so well), this decision seems to confirm the view that the big corporations own the government, and are about to own it even more.


So what's next? Gatorade buys out the FDA and then the FCC?

[California Joe]

I think it'll just force our elected representatives to become even bigger whores than they are now. They already spend 75 or 80% of their time fundraising for the next election now, this looks like it'll just escalate everything into a bidding war of obscene proportions.

[FullMetalJackass]

So what's next? Gatorade buys out the FDA and then the FCC?

Ever seen the movie idiocracy?

But its got electrolytes...

[martinexsquaddie]

ad campaigns 24 7 your never escape them
I'm happy to post pro palin threads for cash :)

[martinexsquaddie]

happy to post pro palin threads for cash:)

[seraosha]

Beat you to it.
;)

Transparency will show exactly how much and who got paid by whom.
Unions have been able to pay candidates directly, and Businesses can still not do it.

So we'll see more TV ads up to the last minute on elections.
BFD, change the channel and millions go down the drain.