(C) Daily Kos This story was originally published by Daily Kos and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Democrats unite to curb secret political spending, restore transparency and accountability [1] ['Daily Kos Staff', 'Backgroundurl Avatar_Large', 'Nickname', 'Joined', 'Created_At', 'Story Count', 'N_Stories', 'Comment Count', 'N_Comments', 'Popular Tags'] Date: 2023-02-23 The idea behind the DISCLOSE Act is pretty simple: None of us can really evaluate the merit of messages we’re hearing if we don’t know who’s behind them. After all, an email decrying "extremist" judges means something very different if it’s from Daily Kos than if it’s from the Federalist Society. “Dark money is rotting our political system from the inside out,” said Congressman Cicilline in a press release. “Great economic power should not translate into outsized political power, but thanks to the decision in Citizens United and ensuing regulations, that is now the case. We cannot combat the power of corporate special interests in our political system until we get secret corporate spending out of our elections. It’s time to pass the DISCLOSE Act and end the corrupting influence of dark money in our politics. I’m proud to once again join Senator Whitehouse in introducing this bill.” The DISCLOSE Act would stop anonymous spending in politics by requiring entities trying to influence our elections to disclose their major political donors. It would also increase transparency on political advertisements by requiring disclosure of major donors who underwrite advertisements supporting or attacking judicial nominees. Congress cannot pass this bill soon enough. It seems every week provides yet another story about how undisclosed political spending has influenced some part of American politics. One startling example can be found in the right-wing assault on public education. Groups like “Parents Defending Education” would have you believe it's a grassroots effort being funded by "local moms." In truth, only 2% of their total funding comes from membership dues paid by parents. The rest is overwhelmingly funded by secret donations from big donors. That money has helped flip control of local boards of education, ban books, terrorize LGBTQ+ children, and silence educators. RELATED STORY: Florida substitute fired after video of empty bookshelves goes viral—and gets Republican attention Wealthy special interests and big-money donors hold too much power, and they use political loopholes to hide their spending on lobbying and elections. As a result, the American public doesn't know who they are, where the money comes from, or how much they're spending to influence our democracy. Unsurprisingly, the DISCLOSE Act is extremely popular with voters. Polls have consistently shown that overwhelming majorities support requiring super PACs and secret money groups to make their donors public; making nearly all political contributions fully transparent; providing more transparency into lobbyist fundraising; prohibiting political candidates from benefiting from unlimited secret corporate money to boost their campaigns; and requiring organizations engaged in political activity to disclose their large donors. No matter our color, party, or zip code, we deserve an equal say in the decisions that shape our future. To protect our democracy and win victories in health care, racial justice, reproductive rights, environmental justice, and more, we need a government in service of the people—not the wealthy and powerful. The DISCLOSE Act would help restore transparency and accountability to our political system. Sign and send a petition to Congress, urging them to support the DISCLOSE Act. [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2023/2/23/2154604/-Democrats-unite-to-curb-secret-political-spending-restore-transparency-and-accountability Published and (C) by Daily Kos Content appears here under this condition or license: Site content may be used for any purpose without permission unless otherwise specified. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/dailykos/