Libby Mitchell Decries Supreme Court Ruling on Corporate Contributions
January 26, 2010
A statement calling on Senators Snowe and Collins to support Clean Elections
Last Thursday’s United State Supreme Court decision in Citizen’s United v. Federal Elections Commission removed limits on corporate contributions, equating corporations with individuals. This ruling turns back years of progress made on campaign finance reform. As Justice Stevens said in an eloquent dissent, “While American democracy is imperfect, few outside the majority of this court would have thought its flaws included a dearth of corporate money in politics.”
With corporations now unleashed to spend more heavily in elections, our need to declare independence from corporate money changes from a policy matter to a mission.
Corporate contributions will not shake my commitment to Clean Elections. I began this race for governor as a clean elections candidate, meaning I cannot take one contribution from any corporation or organization. I am more committed than ever to that stand.
Even with a new flood of corporate money, we in Maine can show the way to help Congresswoman Pingree and Congressman Michaud bring public financing to federal elections. They are cosponsoring a bill, modeled after Maine’s Clean Elections Act, which will do just that.
I urge our Senators, Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, to join the rest of Maine’s delegation in supporting this important bill.
Maine has a strong tradition of good government and transparency and Maine voters have consistently supported clean elections. By standing up for these values we can do our part to lessen the influence of corporations and special interest money in politics. We can tilt the balance of power back where it belongs – in the hands of individual Americans.
