San Diego’s city council is set to vote this afternoon on a resolution calling on the federal government to consider an amendment to the Constitution that would reverse the ability of corporations and other entities to pump an unlimited amount of money into the political system as granted by the now-infamous Citizens United Supreme Court ruling.
The measure was brought to council by 7th District councilwoman Marti Emerald at the behest of Money Out of Politics San Diego, described as “a coalition organized by Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, and Women Occupy San Diego.” It cleared the five-member Rules committee on November 14, and is endorsed by a handful of other, mostly liberal-leaning local citizens’ groups.
“The Citizens United decision has given powerful corporations unprecedented power to control our elections, by allowing unlimited spending through Super PACs,” says Dianne Lane, a Point Loma resident and activist supporting the resolution.
The specific text of the resolution, as parsed by the city attorney, calls for a 28th Amendment to the Constitution “to provide that corporations are not entitled to the entirety of protections or ‘rights’ of natural persons, specifically so that the expenditure of corporate money to influence the electoral process is no longer a form of constitutionally protected speech.”
The California state legislature, as well as the governing bodies of various other state and municipal governments, have passed similar measures at the urging of various liberal action committees.
San Diego’s city council is set to vote this afternoon on a resolution calling on the federal government to consider an amendment to the Constitution that would reverse the ability of corporations and other entities to pump an unlimited amount of money into the political system as granted by the now-infamous Citizens United Supreme Court ruling.
The measure was brought to council by 7th District councilwoman Marti Emerald at the behest of Money Out of Politics San Diego, described as “a coalition organized by Common Cause, the League of Women Voters, and Women Occupy San Diego.” It cleared the five-member Rules committee on November 14, and is endorsed by a handful of other, mostly liberal-leaning local citizens’ groups.
“The Citizens United decision has given powerful corporations unprecedented power to control our elections, by allowing unlimited spending through Super PACs,” says Dianne Lane, a Point Loma resident and activist supporting the resolution.
The specific text of the resolution, as parsed by the city attorney, calls for a 28th Amendment to the Constitution “to provide that corporations are not entitled to the entirety of protections or ‘rights’ of natural persons, specifically so that the expenditure of corporate money to influence the electoral process is no longer a form of constitutionally protected speech.”
The California state legislature, as well as the governing bodies of various other state and municipal governments, have passed similar measures at the urging of various liberal action committees.