Last Friday in Washington, DC, advocates for Congressional public campaign financing — “Fair Election Now Act” – held a forum on the future of participatory democracy in the United States. The keynote speakers were Senator Dick Durbin (RD-IL) and Congressman John Larson (D-CT), the original sponsors of legislation to that would create a voluntary public financing option for candidates Congressional candidates.
Larson and Durbin stressed the importance of passing this legislation — especially in light of an expected Supreme Court decision (Citizens United vs FEC) that would unleash millions more in corporate campaign contributions to candidates. They spoke of the stranglehold that big campaign donors have over Congress with respect to solving critical problems like health care, climate control, bank regulation and so many others.
Only with public financing of campaigns can ordinary citizens hope to run for office, have their representatives accountable to them, and again have trust in our democracy. Durbin, Larson, and others called on all of us to fight for a true democracy at the state and federal level by helping to pass laws that publicly fund election campaigns.
Here’s a video of some higlights from the event: