Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer
On January 21, 2010, two years ago, five Supreme Court Justices issued a radical decision in the Citizens United case that is now wreaking havoc on the 2012 elections. The Citizens United decision has done enormous damage to our political system and our democracy.
The Citizens United decision fundamentally undermined the nation’s anti-corruption campaign finance laws.
The decision is beyond extreme in explicitly stating that the ability of the country to be protected from the corruption of our government is outweighed by the right of a corporation to make unlimited expenditures to influence elections. The decision is beyond the pale in flatly stating that it is perfectly OK to use campaign money to buy influence over our elected representatives in Washington.
The Founding Fathers were well aware of the dangers of corruption when they wrote the Constitution. The Court’s extreme position in Citizens United notwithstanding, the Founders did not create an overriding right for corporations that would leave the new nation unable to protect itself from corruption.
The five Justices who voted for the Citizens United decision – Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Anthony Kennedy, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito – will go down in history for issuing one of the worst and most misguided decisions in the history of the Supreme Court.
Citizens must and will overcome the damage done to the country by five Supreme Court Justices who valued the right of corporations to influence elections over the right of citizens to be protected from corruption of their government.
In the end, the Citizens United decision will not stand the test of time and history.
The eloquent dissenting opinion in Citizens United written by Justice John Stevens on behalf of four Justices will one day become the Supreme Court’s majority position.
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