News

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, […]

Democracy 21 Praises Bill to be Introduced Shortly by Representatives Van Hollen and Brady to Close Campaign Finance Disclosure Loopholes, Including Super PAC Disclosure Problems

Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer In a Dear Colleague letter sent yesterday to House Members, Representatives Chris Van Hollen and Robert Brady announced they would be introducing legislation shortly to close gaping loopholes in the campaign finance disclosure laws. The legislation would close loopholes in disclosure that have resulted from a combination of […]

Democracy 21 President Attacks Supreme Court Majority for One of Worst Decisions in Court’s History

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 […]

POLITICO Op-ed: Super PACS wreak havoc

By Fred Wertheimer The Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, issued two years ago this week, is wreaking havoc on the 2012 elections. When the Roberts Court decided to strike down the ban on corporate expenditures in campaigns, the five justices who issued the opinion surely had no idea their misguided decision would cause such enormous damage to […]

Washington Post Editorial: Mitt Romney’s failed plan to ‘fix’ campaign financing

MITT ROMNEY HAS a prescription for the super PAC problem: Allow political candidates to collect unlimited donations, instead of having the funds funneled to supposedly independent groups. “Let campaigns then take responsibility for their own words,” Mr. Romney said at Monday’s debate. He raises an intriguing question: Given the Supreme Court’s flawed interpretation of the First Amendment […]

Dealing with Super PAC Problems: Comprehensive Disclosure Legislation to be Introduced by Disclosure Reform Leaders Will Solve Super PAC Disclosure Problems

Democracy 21 Preparing Legislative Proposal to End Candidate-Specific Super PAC Scam     Statement of Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer   Super PACs are the campaign finance scandal of the 2012 elections. They allow influence-seeking individuals, corporations, labor unions and other donors to give unlimited, corrupting contributions to support federal candidates. In particular, the presidential candidate-specific […]

Democracy 21 Sent Letter to Attorney General Today to Supplement January 10th Letter that Raised Serious Questions about the Legality of the Presidential Candidate-Specific Super PACs

Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer Report sent by Democracy 21 to the Attorney General that raised serious questions about the legality of five leading presidential candidate-specific Super PACs. Today’s letter was sent “to supplement the information contained in the Report and to provide information on a sixth candidate-specific Super PAC, the Red, White and Blue […]