The Supreme Court stabbed Democracy this morning. I was there; I saw it happen. You weren't physically present in the courtroom of the Supreme Court today, but if you signed our petition, you were there with me, in spirit and by name. All your petitions were there in the courtroom when the Supreme Court rendered its decision. They were presented to the Court. And now it's time to act.
We have filed five bills to reverse this assault, the Save Our Democracy package. Tell your Congressmen and your Senators -- "This must pass". In the meantime, you can still sign the petition at www.savedemocracy.net, and together we will move forward.
My statement is below.
In a 5-to-4 decision today, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that corporations have the "right" to spend an unlimited amount of money to influence and manipulate federal elections. The decision overturns more than a century of law and precedent. Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) immediately condemned the decision. "This is the worst Supreme Court decision since the Dred Scott case," Grayson said. "It leads us all down the road to serfdom."
The court decision completely ignores the likelihood that corporations will spend money to elect officials who will do their bidding, and punish those who won't. It allows unlimited election spending by all corporations, even foreign ones. "The Supreme Court has decided to protect the rights of GE, Volkswagen, Lukoil and Aramco, at the expense of our right to good government," Grayson added.
Congressman Grayson was in the courtroom when the U.S. Supreme Court announced its decision. Grayson circulated a petition yesterday, saying: "Unlimited corporate spending on campaigns means the government is up for sale, and that the law itself will be bought and sold." Within hours, over 10,000 people had signed the petition. Rep. Grayson delivered those petitions to the Court this morning.
Rep. Grayson also has introduced five bills, the Save Our Democracy package, in anticipation of the Supreme Court's ruling. When he introduced the bills, Grayson said, "if this goes unchallenged, then you can kiss your country goodbye."
Today, Rep. Grayson called for immediate action on his Save Our Democracy bills. "If we do nothing, then before long, there won't be Senators from Oklahoma or Virginia, there will be Senators from Citibank and WalMart. Maybe they will wear insignias on their $500 suits, like NASCAR drivers do."
Grayson urges people to contact their Senators and Congressmen, and urge support for the Save Our Democracy bills.
UPDATE: Here's a photo from this morning.
