 Corporate behemoths like Chevron, Verizon and Lockheed Martin are snout-deep in the taxpayer trough.Companies affiliated with the Koch brothers have received $100 million from federal coffers in recent years [1]. And here’s what’s truly outrageous: Corporations that receive government contracts can secretly funnel untold sums to help elect (and re-elect) the very same lawmakers who are responsible for — you guessed it — awarding government contracts. It’s a cycle of corruption enabled by a detestable loophole in election law. But there’s good news: Closing the corrupting loophole doesn’t require an act of Congress. The president can fix the problem with the stroke of a pen. Click here to join our friends at Public Citizen in urging President Barack Obama to sign an executive order requiring federal contractors to disclose their political spending. Recently, President Obama expressed his strong support for a constitutional amendment to overturn the U.S. Supreme Court’s appalling Citizens United ruling [2]. But actions speak louder than words. If the President wants to fight corruption, he doesn’t need to wait for Congress and the states to pass a constitutional amendment. He can use his authority right now to require corporations with business before the government to be transparent about their electioneering activities, allowing voters to see for themselves if their representatives or senators seem to owe Big Business any big favors [3]. President Obama has shown a willingness to challenge the do-nothing Congress by issuing executive orders on other important issues. Let’s encourage the White House to demonstrate the same resolve on transparency of money in politics and ending pay-to-play favoritism in government contracting. Add your name to Public Citizen’s petition urging the president to close the corruption loophole. If allowed to continue, the cycle of corruption virtually guarantees that parasitic corporations will keep siphoning our tax dollars into profit-driven boondoggles, even as congressional austerity extremists clamor for cuts to programs that assist struggling Americans. Let’s end the cycle of corruption. -- The RootsAction.org Team P.S. RootsAction is an independent online force endorsed by Jim Hightower, Barbara Ehrenreich, Cornel West, Daniel Ellsberg, Glenn Greenwald, Naomi Klein, Bill Fletcher Jr., Laura Flanders, former U.S. Senator James Abourezk, Coleen Rowley, Frances Fox Piven, Lila Garrett, Phil Donahue, Sonali Kolhatkar, and many others. P.P.S. This work is only possible with your financial support. Please donate. Footnotes: 1. Media Matters: Koch Companies Have Received Almost $100 Million In Government Contracts 2. Vox: President Obama: I’d love a constitutional amendment to reverse Citizens United 3. Washington Post: Obama weighs disclosure order for contractors | ||
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