Restoring Election Integrity

Floor Speech

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Ms. STANSBURY. Mr. Speaker, 16 years ago today, the Supreme Court decided in the Citizens United decision to put our democracy up for sale. I am here today to say, Mr. Speaker, that democracy is not for sale, and it is time to get big money out of politics, to end Citizens United, and to hold this administration, this Congress, and this judiciary accountable. That is because what we have seen is the fundamental erosion of our democratic system, and at the rotten root of it all is the influence of big money in politics. That is because Citizens United opened the door for corporations and billionaires to dump untold sums of money on to our elections anonymously and calling corporations people.

Mr. Speaker, corporations are not people. The American people are whom we represent. It is not the corporations, not the billionaires, not the wealthy donors, and not the individuals who are trying to buy and sell our democracy.

We know that right now corruption and the buying of elections are having a profound influence on what we are seeing in this country. We are watching as a United States President is selling the United States out from under the American people. He is offering pardons for millions of dollars to his friends and letting dangerous individuals back on to the streets. These are individuals who have committed white-collar crimes all for the very cheap sum of giving him a few million dollars or a few billion dollars in his cryptocurrency.

He is selling our secrets and our national security to foreign adversaries by allowing them to deposit sums of money into his cryptocurrency by giving him gifts like multimillion-dollar jets and, yes, even allowing him to potentially launder money in a foreign bank account in Qatar from oil he stole using the American taxpayers' dollars and the U.S. military.

President Trump is showing what happens when you let big money buy politics. In fact, he told Big Oil just last year that if they gave him $1 billion in campaign funds, he would deliver. Well, promises made, promised kept, literally invading a foreign country to take their oil.

Here in this Chamber, just a few days ago, it was discovered that the husband of a member of leadership on the opposite side of the aisle had been trading in stocks, while we are considering a stock trading ban right now in this House. This is corruption in action.

We have a judiciary across the street who is considering undermining the fundamental voting rights of the American people.

After their wealthy donors took them on trips and involved them in this vast scheme over the last several years to fundamentally remake America, the same donors who donated to Donald Trump and who donated to our friends across the aisle are also making money hand over fist on the stock market right now.

This is what comes from Citizens United, and that is why, Mr. Speaker, I am absolutely dedicated to fighting to make sure that we get big money out of politics and that we end Citizens United. When we take back the House--because, Mr. Speaker, we will take back the House--I guarantee you that on day one, our top priority will be to root this corruption and this rot out of the Federal Government.

It is time to get big money out of politics, and I am here for the fight.

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