14 years of Citizens United

Overturning this bad decision is a start, but it’s not the only fix.

Katie Porter

Jan 21

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Today marks 14 years since the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision.

I’m sure many politicians have sent you texts or emails about how Citizens United was a disastrous decision.

It’s true—the decision has led to more than a decade of outrageously expensive elections, untraceable donations, and super PACs that do the bidding of powerful corporations.

Overturning Citizens United is a necessary step to cleaning up our political system, but it’s not the only step. Corruption existed in Congress prior to this 2010 decision.

We should go further and get to the root of the problem: corporate cash, in any form. Washington ignores the interests of working people because so many Members are beholden to corporate PACs and ultra-wealthy donors. I’m the only candidate in this race who supports banning corporate PAC money and federal lobbyist money.

Another blatant form of corruption that we must address: Members of Congress trading stocks based on information we learn in private. A 2022 New York Times analysis showed that nearly a fifth of Congresspeople have made a stock trade that reveals a possible conflict of interest, including several in the earliest days of the COVID pandemic, when Congress was privy to private information about this emerging threat.

That’s why just last week I joined a bipartisan group of colleagues in urging Speaker Johnson to hold a vote on the STOCK ACT 2.0. This is my bill to *effectively* ban Members of Congress and their spouses from trading stocks, and it would implement real punishment for Members who choose to break the law.

Stock trading is a problem on both sides of the aisle, and both Republican and Democratic Speakers have refused to allow a vote on this bill. It’s BS.

There’s much work to do to clean up Washington. It’s a good thing that as a mom of three, I’m used to mess.

Onward!

Katie Porter

P.S. — My campaigns have all been funded by supporters like you. We’re proof that you don’t need to do things the way they’ve always been done. If you’d like to chip in today, here’s a link: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/kpsubstackq124&refcode=0121