Influence of special interests in Congress weakens the DISCLOSE Act

June 18, 2010

Yesterday, Change Congress founder Lawrence Lessig called the DISCLOSE Act "pathetic and puny" in a piece on Huffington Post, and with good reason. (check out the piece here for more background)

Earlier this week authors of the bill agreed to an exception for organizations that met certain requirements. One of these exempted organizations? The NRA.

An article in today's New York Times explained that the deal was made after several House Democrats "refuse[d] to take any action that could rile the gun lobby". After all, in the 2008 election cycle, the NRA gave over $1 million to campaigns, and have already donated half a million dollars in campaign cash for the 2010 elections. (OpenSecrets.org)

The article described the uphill battle against special interests that President Obama faces:

The episode has highlighted again the difficulty President Obama has had in fulfilling his promise to diminish the power of lobbyists and interest groups, and how deeply entrenched the groups are in the process of shaping policy proposals into detailed legislation.

The special interest power is so strong that even legislation regulating their activity is affected just by the threat of more or less campaign cash. This is unacceptable. The voters should be the only influence on Congress. The Fair Elections Now Act returns power to the hands of the voters. Take action today! Call your representatives and demand their support.

 

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