Since the 2008 victory of Citizens United, a political action group, corporations share the same right to free speech as we the people. With their right to pay for electioneering communications in federal elections, Big Money now wields immense power on who gets elected and what laws and regulations are approved or not.

Here’s how our candidates stand on overturning Citizens United to reclaim our democracy.

Hillary Clinton – Democratic Party

There’s no question that we need to make Washington work much better than it does today. And that means, in particular, getting unaccountable money out of politics… That’s why I’m so passionate about the issue and I will fight hard to end the stranglehold that the wealthy and special interests have on so much of our government.
~ Hillary Clinton on Campaign Finance Reform, June 2016

Learn more and watch a video clip on “Hillary’s Fight Against Citizens United” at http://www.hillaryclinton.com/issues/campaign-finance-reform/

 

Jill Stein – Green Party

Abolish corporate personhood… Enact electoral reforms that break the big money stranglehold and create truly representative democracy: public campaign financing, ranked-choice voting, proportional representation, and open debates.
~ Empower the People: http://www.jill2016.com/plan

[We don’t] accept corporate money… Most of our money comes from small donors, just everyday people. (June 2015)

We now have influence-peddling on steroids with Citizens United and the Super PACs… We have a political system which is completely disconnected with the public, and connected instead with those with deep pockets who can fund these campaigns with such extreme amounts. (December 2011)

Learn more at http://www.ontheissues.org/2016/Jill_Stein_Government_Reform.htm

 

Donald Trump – Republican Party

The Establishment:
I want to win for the people of this great country. The only people I will owe are the voters. The media, special interests, and lobbyists are all trying to stop me. We won’t let that happen!

Self Funding:
I am self funding my campaign so I don’t owe anything to lobbyists and special interests.

Learn more at http://www.donaldjtrump.com/issues/

Super PACs are a disaster. They’re a scam. They cause dishonesty. And you better get rid of them because they are causing a lot of bad decisions to be made by some very good people. (October 2015)

Learn more at
http://www.ontheissues.org/2016/Donald_Trump_Government_Reform.htm

 

Gary Johnson – Libertarian Party

Johnson doesn’t mention Citizens United on his party’s official website. In 2010, he favored unlimited contributions to electoral campaigns by both individuals and corporations. However, he is a strong advocate of term limits for governors and members of Congress.

Under a republican form of government, representatives should be accountable to all people, not institutional forces like lobbyists, special interests, and partisan gamesmanship. Yet today, politicians are often unable to do their job because they are incentivized to do what it takes to get re-elected, not to do what is right for the American people. This doesn’t make them bad people. But it does make for bad representation.

Learn more at http://www.johnsonweld.com/term_limits