[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 6]
[House]
[Page 8638]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           BAN ON CORPORATE EXPENDITURES IN FEDERAL CAMPAIGNS

  (Mrs. CHRISTENSEN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, 2 years ago in Citizens United, the 
Supreme Court overturned two decades of precedents to strike down the 
ban on corporate expenditures in Federal campaigns. This opened the 
floodgates and allows corporations to spend unlimited funds, so now 
money comes from a handful of billionaires looking to wield their 
influence, and no one has to know who they are.
  Campaigns like the one in Wisconsin and many others are being bought 
with that money instead of being decided by an honestly and factually 
informed public, as they should be. Romney's secretly funded PAC alone 
spent $46 million before Memorial Day to sway your opinion, and it will 
continue to spend even more.
  We have to end the influence of the secret money on our elections. 
That's why I am a cosponsor of the DISCLOSE Act, which will restore 
accountability in our elections. Americans want and deserve a more open 
and honest political process. Republicans blocked that bill in 2010. 
The GOP needs to listen to Americans and bring the DISCLOSE Act to the 
floor.
  The American public has a right to know who is paying for campaign 
ads that they will be swamped with this election cycle, and they need 
to know sooner rather than later.

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