"This is a nightmare ruling. Corporations are not people." - Rachel Maddow
Go to the five minute mark of this clip:
This SCOTUS decision in the Citizens United case is such an outrageous OVERREACH, we really couldn't have asked for a better unifying rallying cry against the repugligorn corporatists. As Keith Olbermann noted, it is as bad a decision as Dred Scott. Until I watched the above TRMS segment on it, the decision had me terrified. Now I almost want to say 'bwahaha' to it. We can effectively run and win on this issue in 2010. It may also help in the HCR battle.
So much of the work has already been done for us - many prominent Repugs are lining up behind this horrific miscarriage of justice. THEY are the ones on the side of the banks, the corporations. WE are on the side of the people.
The Republicans will choke on this, if we organize against it properly. I'm further encouraged by the fact that POTUS apparently railed against the ruling in his Saturday address today. Cheers to all.
UPDATE 1: partial Rachel transcript here:
Yesterday's radical Supreme Court ruling opens up the flood gates for unlimited corporate spending on campaigns. It says Big Business can spend as much money as it wants to, trying to defeat one candidate or another.
Individual citizens' freedom to effect our democracy, anyone's ability to make a difference, who isn't named Exxon, consider yourself squished under the heel of special interests and the nation's most rich and powerful companies.
And republican politicians are ALL in favor of it!
(cut to Minority Leader Boehner saying he totally lurves this SC decision.)
Guys - we can't lose with this. The crazy thing is that they did it to themselves. Hoisted by their own unbridled greed. Thank you, Rachel Maddow, for this fan-freaking-tastic bit of political insight and winning way forward. Cheers.
UPDATE 2: From the comments, pullbackthecurtain said,
If you skipped ahead to 5 minutes, you missed this gem:
"Right now, banks are about as popular as an alligator in a duck pond!" (-Rachel Maddow)
It's true - watch the clip in its entirety to fully appreciate how great a framing/political narrative this is.
UPDATE 3: The comments have become a veritable troll festival, which I am taking as a good sign. Means we hit a nerve, or as Rachel put it, "a glass jaw". So rec this baby up, please, because I think they also perform weird reclist trollery as well. Smells like victory!! :)
UPDATE 4: Go to about 1min15sec into today's Weekly Address: looks like POTUS is already on this tip. It's stirring - He cites Teddy Roosevelt in the smackdown. He'll probably hit it out of the park in the State of the Union in a couple days. teehee:
UPDATE 5: Some thoughts...
The Republicans were counting on our being afraid and demoralized by this ruling, and for a few days I'd say it was working gangbusters. But as FDR said, the only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.
And one last thing because I simply can't resist, something they might not have been expecting when they concocted this last-gasp terror ploy:
This SCOTUS ruling will be their Waterloo.