Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 01:35 pm
In response to the Koch Brothers’ plan to spend $400 million on Republican election campaigns, Sen. Bernie Sanders called out the Kochs and urged America to stand up against Citizens United.
In the response to the Koch plan to spend more money influencing campaigns in key states ($400 million) than John McCain raised in 2008 campaign ($370 million), Sen. Bernie Sanders said, “The Koch brothers’ bid to buy elections in America speaks to the obvious need for a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and subsequent rulings. In the short term, Congress must pass legislation to require disclosure of the corporations and wealthy individuals behind the ads by outside groups.”
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Sen. Sanders said the Koch spending demonstrates that we are no longer a nation of the people, “When one wealthy family spends more money than was raised altogether by the last Republican presidential candidate, it tells us that we are no longer a country of the people, by the people and for the people. We are becoming a country of the rich, by the rich and for the rich.”
The Koch Brothers may have the dollars, but the people still have the numbers. Now more than ever, it is imperative that the American people stand together to turn back this threat to our democracy. This isn’t just about who wins and loses elections. As ALEC has demonstrated, right wing funded candidates if left unchecked, win elections, and then implement the far right agenda of their billionaire masters. The Koch plan is a perfect example of how our representative democracy is being turned into an oligarchy of the few.
In a Congress that is infested with corporate, special interest, and billionaire dollars on both sides of the aisle, Bernie Sanders is standing virtually alone in his calls for action and reform. Sen. Sanders can’t do it alone. We can’t allow him to be a one man army against the Koch Brothers.
War metaphors should never be used lightly, but the situation brought on by Citizens United is nothing short of a war for our future freedoms and democratic system of government. Some of the left may blanch at the term, but the truth is that the Koch Brothers and conservative billionaire pals believe that this is a war, even if you don’t. Because of their mentality your choice is either to fight or be steamrolled
Sen. Sanders and your country need your help, and there is something that you can do right now.
Sign the petition supporting the Saving Democracy Amendment, which would overturn Citizens United. Over 219,000 people have signed the petition so far, but it is not enough. It will take an army of millions of Americans standing in unison to save our country from the billionaire oligarchs.
Bernie Sanders is leading the battle, but it is up to every single American to win the war.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
