The Chamber of Commerce and other conservative groups are spending millions to try to influence the November elections in New York and other states. With the Supreme Court for the first time allowing unlimited spending by corporations, the airwaves are flooded with attack ads against progressives. These attacks are funded by corporations, but without revealing exactly who is actually paying for the ads.
Recently it was revealed that the Chamber is not just collecting millions from American corporations, but is taking money from foreign corporations as well. This corporate money is not only drowning out the voices of ordinary Americans but of the candidates themselves! It is estimated that conservative-leaning groups have spent over $25 million just in the last five weeks to try to influence the elections.
This outrageous highjacking of our democracy has to be stopped. Elections should be about the will of the people, not the money of corporations. We need to tell our elected representatives to support the Fair Elections Now Act (HR 6116/1826) that was recently endorsed by the House Administration Committee. Write, call, email, fax or show up at the office of your representative in Congress and urge him or her to press for a House vote on Fair Elections after November 2nd. Fair Elections would empower small donors and make sure our elected officials are accountable to us.
And let’s congratulate and thank New York House politicians who are helping us take back democracy by endorsing Fair Elections. That includes Senator Gillibrand as well as these members of the House: Ackerman, Arcuri, Bishop, Clarke, Crowley, Engel, Hall, Hinchey, Israel, Lowey, Maffei, Maloney, Massa, McCarthy, Meeks, Murphy, Nadler, Owens, Rangel, Serrano, Slaughter, Tonko, Towns, Valezquez, and Weiner.
Let’s put voters back in the driver’s seat with Fair Elections Now.