ProgressivePower · @ProgressivePower
132 followers · 1996 posts · Server newsie.social
Dave Id · @daveid
170 followers · 490 posts · Server kolektiva.social
Thanks to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United ruling in 2010, a trove of “dark money” was about to be unleashed. Leonard Leo and Clarence Thomas' wife Ginny Thomas seized the moment.
#SupremeCourt #CitizensUnited #LeonardLeo #ClarenceThomas #GinnyThomas
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/10/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-citizens-united-00108082
#supremecourt #citizensunited #LeonardLeo #clarencethomas #ginnythomas
Gladwyn d’Souza · @godsouza
177 followers · 3180 posts · Server sfba.socialPolitico also published a timeline of Thomas and Leo’s moves.
A nonprofit, Liberty Central, was incorporated with $500,000 from Crow on 31 December 2009, three and a half months after the close of oral arguments in #CitizensUnited. Decision was handed down on 21st January 2010.
#corruptrobertscourt #HarlanCrowJustice
#citizensunited #corruptrobertscourt #harlancrowjustice
Democracy Matters :verified: · @DemocracyMattersALot
5244 followers · 15616 posts · Server mstdn.socialGinni Thomas and rightwing activists exploited supreme court ruling – report #GinniThomas #HarlanCrow #ClarenceThomas #CitizensUnited #LeonardLeo https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/sep/11/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-harlan-crow-citizens-united-dark-money
#LeonardLeo #citizensunited #clarencethomas #harlancrow #ginnithomas
U.S. Politics in Real Time · @uspolitics
4901 followers · 4766 posts · Server mastodon.sdf.org
Ginni Thomas and Conservative Activists Worked Together to Exploit Citizens United Ruling: Report
#GinniThomas #ConservativeActivists #CitizensUnited #Exploit #RollingStone #Report #Politics #News
#ginnithomas #conservativeactivists #citizensunited #exploit #rollingstone #report #politics #news
Nonilex · @Nonilex
928 followers · 3368 posts · Server masto.aiThe #CitizensUnited decision — which extended #FreeSpeechRights to #corporations, #nonprofits & #unions — effectively curbed efforts to rein in #political spending, while paving the way for follow-up rulings from courts & the #FEC that would unleash additional billions of dollars in donations. Those donors would spawn a boom in #TaxExempt “#charitable” & “#SocialWelfare” groups as vehicles for spending on political activity.
#citizensunited #freespeechrights #corporations #nonprofits #unions #political #fec #taxexempt #charitable #socialwelfare
Nonilex · @Nonilex
928 followers · 3368 posts · Server masto.aiJustice Anthony Kennedy, a Ronald Reagan appointee, assumed in his majority opinion in #CitizensUnited that #donations & #spending around such groups would be transparent. Justice #ClarenceThomas, in his concurring opinion, argued against “forcibly disclosed donor information,” which could “pre-empt citizens’ exercise of their First Amendment rights.”
#citizensunited #donations #spending #clarencethomas
Nonilex · @Nonilex
927 followers · 3362 posts · Server masto.aiMany people trace the start of the #conservative #legal movement to 1982, the year of the founding of the #FederalistSociety, which provided a forum for #law students & profs w/conservative ideas to incubate their theories.
But the movement that has had such a profound impact on the courts today — one that involves #money & #politics, more than legal theories or principles — gained steam in the wake of the #CitizensUnited decision.
#conservative #legal #federalistsociety #law #money #politics #citizensunited #darkmoney #influence #corruption #minoritarianism
Nonilex · @Nonilex
927 followers · 3357 posts · Server masto.aiTwo months before the #CitizensUnited decision…, #attorney #CletaMitchell — later to play a role in #Trump’s false claims about the 2020 elections — filed papers for #GinniThomas to create a *#nonprofit* group of a type that ultimately benefited from the decision. #Leo was one of two directors listed on a separate application to conduct business in the state of Virginia. #Thomas was president. She signed it on New Year’s Eve of 2009, & #Crow provided much of the initial #cash.
#citizensunited #attorney #cletamitchell #trump #ginnithomas #nonprofit #leo #thomas #crow #cash
beSpacific · @bespacific
1180 followers · 2182 posts · Server newsie.social
This story of how #corruption permeates the highest level of our country's legal and political systems continues to unravel and yet there is no action. This is shameful, and deadly for our democracy. What #GinniThomas and #LeonardLeo wrought: How a justice’s wife and a key activist started a movement. Thanks to #SCOTUS #CitizensUnited ruling, a trove of so-called #darkmoney was about to be unleashed. 2 activists prepared to seize the moment. https://www.politico.com/news/2023/09/10/ginni-thomas-leonard-leo-citizens-united-00108082
#Corruption #GinniThomas #leonardleo #SCOTUS #citizensunited #darkmoney
jackhutton · @jackhutton
1168 followers · 8651 posts · Server mstdn.socialWhat Ginni Thomas and Leonard Leo wrought: How a justice’s wife and a key activist started a movement https://politi.co/3ExpGO9 via @politico #scotus #clarencethomas #ginnithomas #leoleonard #citizensunited
#citizensunited #leoleonard #ginnithomas #clarencethomas #SCOTUS
Heath Stewart · @heaths
197 followers · 562 posts · Server fosstodon.org@BillyJBryant @arstechnica Sadly, with legalized bribery - err, #CitizensUnited - I just can't see that legislation even getting onto the floor.
GryphonSK · @GryphonSK
276 followers · 3091 posts · Server techhub.social
#Conservative voters are the biggest victims of #MainstreamMedia #gaslighting.
#NoMoreCEOs #NoMoreBillionaires #TaxTheRich #corporategreed #donors #citizensunited
#conservative #mainstreammedia #gaslighting #nomoreceos #nomorebillionaires #TaxTheRich #corporategreed #donors #citizensunited
Eka A. · @Eka_FOOF_A
104 followers · 3946 posts · Server spacey.space@GnomeBrunold @Ultraverified @flawed @Radical_EgoCom
Political influence used to be more highly regulated. As an example, #CitizensUnited caused an upheaval allowing the rich and corporations to seriously outspend groups of workers and most individuals. Also capture of the news media by capitalists has muzzled competing voices. We used to have 10,000s of voices providing the news. With consolidation, now there are only a few providing a majority of the consumed news.
Gladwyn d’Souza · @godsouza
160 followers · 2648 posts · Server sfba.social#TragedyOfEnclosure: The analysis of #lobbying, #subsidies and #regulations showed that #livestock #farmers in the EU received 1,200 times more #public #funding than #plantbased meat or #cultivated meat groups. In the US, the animal farmers got 800 times more public funding.
#DeterioratingCarbonSinks #BigAgro #corruptpoliticians #ViolentRanchers #corruptrobertscourt #citizensunited #AbolishTheFilibuster
#tragedyofenclosure #lobbying #subsidies #regulations #livestock #farmers #public #funding #plantbased #cultivated #deterioratingcarbonsinks #bigagro #corruptpoliticians #violentranchers #corruptrobertscourt #citizensunited #abolishthefilibuster
Gladwyn d’Souza · @godsouza
158 followers · 2623 posts · Server sfba.social
It’s important—in this year that has seen #globalwarming come fully to #life—to describe accurately what’s happening on #ourplanet. And one key thing is: the number of places #humans can safely live is now shrinking. Fast. The size of the board on which we can play the great game of human #civilization is getting smaller.
https://billmckibben.substack.com/p/an-ever-smaller-board
#CorruptRobertsCourt #CorruptPoliticians #PetroOligarchs #FarRightWinningElections
#AbolishTheElectoralCollege
#CitizensUnited #CigaretteScience #ClimateRefugees
#globalwarming #life #OurPlanet #humans #civilization #corruptrobertscourt #corruptpoliticians #petrooligarchs #farrightwinningelections #AbolishTheElectoralCollege #citizensunited #cigarettescience #ClimateRefugees
Heath Stewart · @heaths
196 followers · 532 posts · Server fosstodon.org@that_ac @JosephMenn Under #CitizensUnited - legalized bribery - it's not that hard, it seems. Oil and pharma have clearly succeeded.
Gladwyn d’Souza · @godsouza
156 followers · 2534 posts · Server sfba.social
#incrementalism: #EnergyPolicy template hanging on #CitizensUnited #regulatorycapture by #IOU of the mayor: Create a limited purpose #MunicipalUtility designed to specifically support city community #microgrids within targeted regions like #Diridon.
Leverage Direct Access.
Acquire new #transmission.
Leverage shared capabilities of #LSE and #MUNI within a new #citydepartment.
Paywalled.
#Transition
https://www.mercurynews.com/2023/08/12/goodbye-pge-hello-san-jose-power/
#incrementalism #energypolicy #citizensunited #regulatorycapture #IOU #municipalutility #microgrids #diridon #transmission #lse #muni #citydepartment #transition
GryphonSK · @GryphonSK
269 followers · 2956 posts · Server techhub.social
#cornelwest wouldn't be a threat if the #Democrats in power would do what they were #elected to do, instead of serving their #donors.
#cornelwest #democrats #elected #donors #corruption #citizensunited
ShantiS · @Shantis
15 followers · 84 posts · Server mstdn.social@EricLawton @staidwinnow @rbreich Completely agree. If Citizens United is repealed, at least some of the big money from large corporations will disappear. This one change resulted in the ballooning of campaign spending. What a waste of money - ads after ads; sure content creators etc. make money. But think about how those billions of dollars every election cycle could be better spent #CitizensUnited #socialjustice
#socialjustice #citizensunited