Reform Groups Urge House Members to Support and Co-Sponsor DISCLOSE 2012 Act, H.R. 4010

Enclosed for your information is a letter sent by reform groups today to all House members, urging Representatives to support and co-sponsor the DISCLOSE 2012 Act, H.R. 4010. The reform groups include: Americans for Campaign Finance Reform, the Brennan Center for Justice, the Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Common Cause, […]

New York Times Editorial: Sunlight on Secret Donations

Imagine if each of the vicious attack ads staining the presidential campaign had to name the five biggest donors paying for the propaganda, and end with an “I approved this ad” statement from the attack group’s chief operative. This thin ray of sunlight is at the heart of a new House proposal to repair some […]

Democracy 21 Summary of DISCLOSE 2012 Act

Introduced by Representative Chris Van Hollen The DISCLOSE 2012 Act requires any “covered organization” which spends $10,000 or more on a “campaign-related disbursement” to file a disclosure report with the Federal Election Commission within 24 hours of the expenditure, and to file a new report for each additional $10,000 or more that is spent. The […]

Statement of Democracy 21 President: New Disclosure Legislation Introduced Today By Representative Chris Van Hollen to Deal with Problems of Secret Contributions, Untimely Super PAC Disclosure

Democracy 21 applauds Representative Chris Van Hollen for taking the lead again in proposing new disclosure legislation to close gaping loopholes in the campaign finance disclosure laws which allowed more than $135 million in secret contributions to be spent by tax-exempt groups to influence the 2010 congressional races. The loopholes have occurred as a result […]

The Hill Op-ed by Fred Wertheimer: Citizens United more radical than realized

By Fred Wertheimer The Supreme Court’s disastrous decision in the Citizens United case has done enormous damage to our political system. In striking down the ban on expenditures by corporations in elections, the high court, along with subsequent lower court decisions, has opened the door wide for the super rich, corporations and other groups to […]

Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer on Legality of Super PACs Supporting Mitt Romney and President Obama

Based on recent published reports, we believe that both the Super PAC supporting Mitt Romney, Restore our Future, and the Super PAC supporting President Barack Obama, Priorities USA Action, are illegal operations. Democracy 21 wrote to the Justice Department twice last month expressing our concerns about the serious legal questions that exist regarding the presidential […]

Reform Groups Call on House Leaders and Members to Pass STOCK Act to Ban Congressional Insider Trading, Including Provisions to Restore Anti-Corruption Laws

Campaign Legal Center – Common Cause – CREW Democracy 21 – League of Women Voters – OMB Watch – Public Citizen Project on Government Oversight – Sunlight Foundation – U.S. PIRG Below are two letters sent today to all House members from reform groups, urging swift passage of the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act,” […]

Super PAC Disclosure Reports Reveal Out-of-Control and Corrupt System: New Disclosure Legislation Needs to Provide Timely Disclosure

Democracy 21 Preparing Legislative Proposal to End Super PACs Like Ones Being Used in 2012 Presidential Campaign     Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer The Super PAC disclosure reports being filed this week reveal an out-of-control and corrupt system that is doing enormous damage to our political system and to our democracy. A relatively […]

Democracy 21 Urges Senators to Vote for the Leahy-Cornyn Anti-Corruption Amendment to the STOCK Act

Below is letter sent today by Democracy 21 to the Senate, urging Senators to vote for the Leahy-Cornyn “Public Corruption Prosecution Improvements Act” amendment to be offered to the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act” or STOCK Act. Reform groups have sent several letters to Congress in the past in support of the STOCK Act. Democracy 21 […]

Reform Groups to Senate: Pass the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act”

Below is a letter sent by reform groups today to the Senate, urging Senators to vote for passage of the STOCK Act, the “Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act,” scheduled to be taken up in the Senate next week. The organizations include: the Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, Common Cause, […]