“I paid for this message” is something that we will hear from politicians on our airwaves in North Jersey from now until Nov. 8.
While we will be sick of them by the end very shortly, it’s the ads that we don’t know who they are from, using names meant to obfuscate who they are and what they are backing, that is poisoning democracy to the point where it has surpassed the economy as the number one issue for voters this Fall in at least one poll.
Funding these ads as dark money that is corrupting our politics, ushered in by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision. Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy’s majority opinion held that the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act’s prohibition of all independent expenditures by corporations and unions violated the First Amendment’s protection of free speech. What would follow is unlimited election spending, eventually authorizing the creation of Super PACs, and striking down other campaign finance restrictions.
“Dark money” are nonprofits involved in politics but do not disclose their donors, a practice that significantly ramped up after the Citizens United decision. Many dark money groups are 501(c)4 organizations that are allowed to participate in politics as long as it is not their primary activity.
Both sides of the aisle have their own boogeyman when it comes to dark money—George Soros for Republicans, the Koch Brothers for Democrats—but they were blown away by the revelations last week that an Illinois businessman sold his company for $1.6 billion dollars with the proceeds going to political conservative Marble Freedom Trust.
For perspective, the $1.6 billion that the Marble Trust reaped—tax free, by the way—from the sale is slightly more than the total of $1.5 billion spent in 2020 by 15 of the most politically active nonprofit organizations that generally align with Democrats,
Leonard A. Leo, the longtime vice president of the Federalist Society who Justice Clarence Thomas characterized in the past as the “No. 3 most powerful person in the world,” now controls that money. Leo has been credited with engineering the conservative dominance of the Supreme Court and to finance battles over abortion rights, voting rules and climate change policy. Leo strongly defends the deal by arguing “it’s high time for the conservative movement to be among the ranks of George Soros, Hansjörg Wyss, Arabella Advisors and other left-wing philanthropists, going toe-to-toe in the fight to defend our Constitution and its ideals.”
To sum up: One of the most powerful men in Washington who does not hold an elected office has considerable sway on justices on the highest court of the land with a bankroll of $1.6 billion to fund a conservative agenda that goes against the majority of what Americans want on gun rights, abortion and climate change to name just a few.
If that is not the Deep State that MAGA Republicans love to rally against, we do not know what is.
Thirteen years since Citizens United and our politics are much worse. Politicians spend more of their time fundraising then working with their colleagues to solve the problems the nation is facing. And attempts to find real solutions results in ads from the dark money organizations that attempt to derail any progress on issues such as immigration.
Democracy is an issue this Fall because of the continued pushing of the Big Lie, attempts across the U.S. to make voting harder, and by the money that is allowed under the perverse view of the First Amendment by the extremist conservative U.S. Supreme Court. It’s an issue that all candidates should be held accountable for in the upcoming elections this year.
Classic GQP move: attack the center and center-left for something they do a hundred times over. The cognitive dissonance and hypocrisy on the right truly has no limits.
I don’t know how this travesty can be stopped, but it must be. Democracy is being burned to a crisp before our very eyes; how to so few people see this?!?
They left out the W. E. F. They are controlling elected officials including some here in NJ.they are what you should be concerned about. You will own nothing and be happy.
Although I agree with your premise, I believe it is the media that is the problem controlled by the conservatives and liberals. They are clearly not independent. They do it under the guise that they know what they are talking about. They are the problems not the individuals you mentioned. They believe they are protected by the very people they are blaming. Protecting the media under the belief that they are entitled to free speech. They even sell their newspapers to advertisers for money.
Are they talking about the U.S.? I thought it was a republic? My bad.
The media is the problem not those individuals. They are just taking advantage to what the media controls.
Interesting, but not at all surprising that this is a one sided complaint in New Jersey. Dark Money is all of a sudden just a problem on the right, where “democracy is at stake.” There is plenty of dark money and more if it coming from the left wing in this country. To push for “voting rights” that will allow for no restrictions at all in who votes or how many times. The “For the People Act” was a complete joke just as the “Inflation Reduction Act” is. Voters, even in liberal NJ aren’t fooled and that’s why the recent gubernatorial election was so unpredictability close. You liberals like to use the term, The Big Lie” as if you say it enough times everyone will believe it. One out of three murders are prosecuted in the US each year. Why is that? Lack of evidence. There is a dead body that all can see but no evidence who committed the crime. Lack of evidence that can be proven in court is not evidence that voter fraud hasn’t been committed. Wake up people.
These northjersey.com editorials are so full of shit. The biggest threat to democracy is the democratic party and a good part of the Republican party as well. “Democracy “in the context of this article means simply anything the political left Likes.
“Racism “or “extremeism “is simply anything the political left doesn’t like
The Biggest Threat to Democracy IS the Democratic party corruption! The FBI Knew about the contents of Hunter Biden’s laptop for over 12 months and did NOTHING but hide it. Then when the news broke out about it before the election, Facebook CENSORED any talk about it for 7 days before the election based on Mark Zuckerberg’s own admission recently. He was requested by the CORRUPT FBI to restrict any discussion about it on Facebook. The same FBI that did NOTHING with it for over 12 months. If your “Big Lie” refers to our recent Presidential election fraud, the Big Lie is the DEMOCRATS! They STOLE the election fraudulently with ballot drop boxes that were STUFFED with phony ballots that could NOT be traced… AND 17% of the independents said they would NOT have voted for Biden IF they knew about Hunter Biden’s laptop issue. So the FBI AND Facebook hid the TRUTH to influence the election outcome and the phony ballots gave Biden JUST ENOUGH votes in the key SWING STATES to make sure he won. Not to mention their socialist agenda and letting in almost 2 MILLION Illegals into this country so they can all one day VOTE for the Democrats!
The media is the problem on the left and the right. Freedom of speech is argued for the media to make money. None of these pundits have any idea what they are talking about except for them to make money from advertisers.
The media is the problem not the lack of democracy. They have been manipulating both sides for over 200 years.
Amen
The evil left wing news media and pro crime democratic party are far more to blame for damage done to the American democracy than Leo. There are well intended people who actually believe the left wing media is real news and the democratic party actually cares about America. These illusions carry far more weight in terms of damage to our democracy.
I agree with this article hole heartily!! However, let US not forget that the Democrat’s have also done Many an Dubious dealings also!! AND; Both Parties are Equally Guilty of Circumventing & Breaking Law’s & Playing Political Games & Misleading the People & Voting Fraud’s in order to gain their personal pursuits; So there it is, done spelt out in plain English, ‘What it really be.’//
North Jersey.com is such a wasted opportunity to provide a desperately needed balanced perspective. This style of skewed journalism disregards the value of honest reporting that respects the ability of citizens to make decisions and poisons the well of useful information necessary in sustaining a healthy republic. Is this a Gannett venture? It sure reads like one.
I thought the Big Lie was the Russian Collusion hoax…Maybe this will offset the money the Dems get every year from the teacher’s unions.