Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. SANDERS. Madam President, over 2 years ago, the Supreme Court rendered what I consider to be one of the worst decisions in the history of the United States Supreme Court, and that is regarding the case of Citizens United.
In that case, the Supreme Court, by a 5-to-4 decision, determined that corporations are people, and they have first amendment rights to spend as much money as they want on elections. I think when that decision first came about a lot of people in this country didn't pay attention to it. They looked at it as an abstract legal decision, not terribly important.
Well, today the American people understand the disastrous impact that decision has had because what they are seeing right now on their television screens all across this country is a handful of billionaires and large corporations spending huge amounts of money on the political process, and the American people are asking themselves: Is this really what people fought and died for when they put their lives on the line to defend American democracy? Is American democracy evolving into a situation where a small number of billionaires can put hundreds of millions of dollars into the political process in this State and that State, in Presidential elections, and then elect the people who will govern this country?
I believe very strongly the American people do not think that is appropriate, and I am very happy to say that yesterday, on Town Meeting Day in the State of Vermont--I think my small State has begun the process to overturn this disastrous Citizens United decision. We had 55 towns at town meetings demand the Congress move forward to overturn Citizens United and restore American democracy to the concept of one person, one vote.
What we do on Town Meeting Day in Vermont, all over our State, is people come together and argue about the school budget. They argue about the town budget. They debate the issues, and then they vote. What people in Vermont are saying is they do not want to see our democracy devolve into a situation where corporations are determining who will govern our Nation.
So I am very proud that in the State of Vermont just yesterday 55 separate towns voted to urge the Congress to move forward on a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United. I hope we will heed what the towns in Vermont are saying. I hope other towns and cities in States all over the country will move forward in that direction. I hope the day will come--sooner rather than later--where the Congress will entertain a constitutional amendment and bring it back to the States.
Madam President, at this difficult moment in American democracy, it is imperative that we stand and reclaim our democracy and say to the millionaires and billionaires and the large corporations: Sorry, this country belongs to all of us. This democracy belongs to all of us and not just to you.
Madam President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the names of the 55 towns that passed resolutions yesterday to overturn Citizens United.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the RECORD,
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