| Mother's Milk |
23 June 2003
|
Supreme Court Rules Against Corporate Money
The Supreme Court has ruled that corporate entities, including unions and non-profits, cannot engage in financing political campaigns the way individuals can. The complaints that this infringes on the right to free speech are hollow and wrong, but stem from the court's decision decades ago that corporate entities can enjoy rights that natural persons can. Revoking that foolishness is the next reform to make.
Special interests have become the bogeyman of American politics in recent years; the electorate distinguishes self-interest from special interest (the former is much more patriotic). Yet, the fact that legal as opposed to natural persons may exercise free speech (while avoiding taxes) encourages the rise of special interests.
As President Lincoln so perfectly said, "Corporations have been enthroned, an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money-power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until the wealth is aggregated in a few hands and the Republic is destroyed."
A change in the law can prevent this. The rights and duties under the constitution must apply only to natural persons. For any legal person, there are only privilege that may be revoked should they undermine the common good. Campaign donations are just the beginning.
Let the citizen engage in the debates of the republic as much as they will. Let them buy ads, host meetings, and the rest as individuals. Corporations, unions and the rest are merely expressions of individual wills. Until they can die in battle to protect the republic, they must remain on the political sidelines for they are not the equals of human beings. It will be more inconvenient, but democratic and republican forms of government are not noted for being otherwise.