Senate To Vote On Disclose Act Tomorrow

Despite losing key battles yesterday on repealing ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,’ and the DREAM Act, the Senate will attempt one more major vote on Thursday.

That’s the day Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has decided to bring the DISCLOSE Act to the floor. The bill, which the House passed in June, would require organizations involved in political campaigning to disclose the identity of their large donors and to reveal their identities in political ads they fund. It would also prohibit foreign corporations, government contractors and TARP recipients from making political donations.

The legislation was crafted in response to a Supreme Court decision in January that allowed corporations and unions to pay for political ads made independently of candidate campaigns.

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), a staunch proponent of the bill, told reporters on Wednesday that unless the Disclose Act is passed, “the winner of every upcoming election this November won’t be Democrats or Republicans; It will be special interests.”

“Passing [the bill] would be a huge win for restoring transparency to our elections,” he added.

Addressing concerns that Democrats are attempting to rush the bill through to help preserve their majority in Congress, Schumer said the legislation would not go into effect until January, two months after the midterms take place. Earlier today, a story that appeared on Politico noted that Democrats are being outspent badly by groups supporting Republican candidates.

Interestingly, Reid decided to schedule the vote on Thursday instead of today partly because a number of Senate Democrats were expected to attend a big-ticket fundraiser this evening in Manhattan, at which the president would be speaking.

Disclose will probably be the last big vote taken in the Senate before members return home in two weeks to campaign for reelection. When asked whether the upper chamber would hold a vote on whether to extend the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, Schumer replied, “It’s being discussed within our caucus now.” House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) told reporters yesterday that his chamber would wait for the Senate to act on the tax cuts.

Obama Pushes Senate To Pass Disclose Act

With the August recess just around the corner, President Barack Obama urged the Senate Monday to pass an upcoming bill aimed at revealing entities responsible for funding respective campaign ads meant to influence elections.

The announcement comes in response to the Citizens United v. Federal Election Committee, where the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 vote that corporate funding, both foreign and domestic, of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited under the First Amendment and the source of income for each broadcast is not obliged to reveal itself.

“These shadow groups are already forming and building warchests of tens of millions of dollars to influence the Fall elections,” Obama said. “Now, imagine the power this will give special interests over politicians.”

The president argued that these corporations will have overwhelming influence over the way Congressmen are voting threatening them with an “onslaught of negative campaign ads” if they do not vote a certain way.

The Disclose Act is a bill Obama said would change this before November’s midterm elections, requiring campaign ads to name their source of funding. Foreign contributors would also be restricted from spending money to influence American elections.

“Nobody is saying you can’t run the ads, just make sure the people know who, in fact is behind financing these ads,” he said.

Obama pushed Senate Republicans to discontinue efforts in preventing this measure from progressing and to vote to pass this legislation when it arrives at the Senate for vote Tuesday.

“This should not be a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, this is an issue that goes to whether or not we’re going to have a government that works for ordinary Americans, a government of, by and for the people,” Obama said. “That’s why these reforms are so important and that’s why I urge the Senate to pass the Disclose Act.”

Group In Landmark Supreme Court Case Blasts DISCLOSE Act

By Justine Rellosa
Talk Radio News Service

The leader of a conservative non-profit group that was at the center of a major Supreme Court ruling earlier this year had harsh words for legislation aimed at adding more transparency to the process by which foreign corporations make campaign contributions.

In 2008, the group, Citizens United, filed an injunction against the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for enforcing provisions within the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act -- also known as McCain-Feingold -- that prevented the group from running television ads to promote a documentary film it produced entitled, Hillary: The Movie within 30 days of the 2008 Democratic primaries.

After a federal court ruled in favor of the FEC's actions, Citizens United appealed and the case went before the Supreme Court. In January of this year, the Court ruled in favor of the group, arguing that corporate funding of political elections cannot be limited under the First Amendment.

During a press conference today, Citizens United President David Bossie assailed a recently introduced piece of legislation called the “Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE)” Act, arguing that it does not consider the First Amendment rights of Americans.

The bill, sponsored by Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), is aimed at prohibiting foreign influence on American elections, and strengthens the 'Pay-to-Play' law.

“This debate is about one thing and one thing only, the right of all Americans to speak out for or against their elected officials,” said Bossie. “Senator Schumer stated that he hoped this legislation would result in fewer people participating in the political process...if that’s not the definition of chilling free speech, I don’t know what is.”

Craig Holman, a legislative representative for Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, offered support for the bill.

“What could be achieved in the DISCLOSE Act is critical disclosure provisions that allow members of Congress and the public to realize...who is financing various campaign ads, who’s behind the campaign ads, and what interest it is that they’re attempting to achieve behind those campaign ads,” he said.