A war is being waged against the DISCLOSE Act. Its Commander in Chief is Senator Mitch McConnell, his secret weapon is misinformation and his goal is to protect unlimited dark money contributions to the political process. It’s time for a counter-attack. Last week, McConnell outlined his plan of attack in a speech to the American Enterprise Institute. Wrapping himself in a narrow and self-serving interpretation of the First Amendment, McConnell casts liberals as the enemies of free speech and he and his foot soldiers (the Chamber of Commerce) as the true protectors of our constitutional rights. But take apart his arguments and it is easy to spot his true intentions—not to protect the free speech rights of all citizens, but to protect the ability of wealthy donors to anonymously influence our democratic process. The Sunlight Foundation refutes the worst inaccuracies being lobbed against reasonable efforts to disclose the dark money that is infiltrating our elections. This Orwellian tactic is timed to defang public support for the DISCLOSE Act, which the Senate is likely to consider in July.
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The Campaign Legal Center filed this amicus brief on behalf of 14 nonprofit organizations (including the Sunlight Foundation) before the... View Article
Continue readingSanctioning Corruption in the US Senate
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Continue readingCourts See the Light on Transparency
Yesterday, a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals demonstrated that it gets the need for greater transparency... View Article
Continue readingPanel clashes on Citizens United, agrees on real-time disclosure
A discussion about whether to limit money in politics, and how to do so, led to little consensus Tuesday morning among a panel divided between politicians who favor limits on political contributions and election law practicioners who find ways to legally get around or challenge them. But the politicians and lawyers could more or less agree on one thing: more disclosure of campaign giving.
On one side of the argument was Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., sponsor of the legislation that banned unlimited contributions to political parties, presidential candidate Buddy Roemer, an independent pursuing the White House through Americans Elect, and ...
Continue readingSunlight Submits Testimony in Favor of DISCLOSE Act
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Continue readingSenate Introduces Targeted DISCLOSE Act Today
Senate Democrats unveiled their version of the DISCLOSE Act today. (We wrote about the House bill, introduced last month, here.)... View Article
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Sunshine Week presents the perfect opportunity each year to recognize the importance of transparency and open government. This year, with... View Article
Continue readingCitizens United Decision Could Lead to Foreign Interests Influencing US Elections
It should come as no surprise that the trigger for foreign contributions possibly finding an inroad into US elections is none other than the Citizens United decision.
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