We the People Massachusetts

All part of the same problem: Citizens United decision, money in politics, fossil fuel lobbying and climate denial/obstruction, oil export-dependent Russia buying and blackmailing US politicians, CEOs, & media moguls with Epstein in the middle…

Thank you, Rep. Bill Keating, for being the most recent Massachusetts co-sponsor of the We the People Amendment!
Rep. Keating joins Reps. Moulton, Pressley, Neal, and Lynch... we still have to get Reps. Trahan, Clark, Auchincloss, and McGovern to sign on. Constituents, make that call!

Most Americans see unlimited election spending as a threat to democracy: poll - OpenSecrets News The vast majority of Americans — no matter their partisan identification — say unlimited political spending weakens democracy and wealthy…

A new poll shows that regardless of party affiliation, Americans believe unlimited political spending weakens democracy, wealthy donors have too much influence, the Citizens United decision was a mistake, and government needs to take action. www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/10...

Time to pass HJR54, the We the People Amendment, to stop corporations from claiming the constitutional rights of real people. Is your Representative a co-sponsor? Check here: www.congress.gov/bill/119th-c...

Exxon sues California over climate laws, alleging free speech violations Oil firm asks court to block enforcement of laws that would require disclosure of planet-heating carbon emissions

CA's Climate Accountability Package requires big companies doing business there to disclose carbon emissions and climate-related financial risks. Exxon is suing saying the disclosure requirements infringe on its right to free speech. www.theguardian.com/business/202...

Republican Political Spending at Trump Properties Tops $1 Million in 2025 MAGA politicians spent the summer pumping more cash into the president’s hotels, golf courses and resorts.

Trump-aligned political committees spent big at Trump-owned private properties, per the latest FEC campaign spending records. www.notus.org/money/republ...

A Maine super PAC case could reshape campaign finance rules nationwide. Or it could backfire. - The Boston Globe The Maine law at the center of the case limits contributions to any super PAC to $5,000 per donor.

A federal court case from Maine now headed to Boston could decide the future of campaign finance in America, writes James Pindell.

Trump Drawings For No Kings Day

For your protest sign, car window, etc: Liza Donnelly's Trump drawings, with links to more illustrations by Anne Telnaes and Steven Brodner. lizadonnelly.substack.com/p/trump-draw...

Best way to celebrate Constitution Day here in Massachusetts? Urge your Representative to co-sponsor HJR 54, the We the People Amendment. We're looking for support from Reps. Auchincloss, Trahan, Keating, McGovern, & Clark. For info on HJR 54, see www.movetoamend.org/amendment.

If your policies are so controversial that you are afraid to face the people you represent, then maybe you are representing your donors instead of them.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM

As campaign spending flows unchecked, some states are trying to impose limits The role of outside money in elections has grown exponentially ever since the Supreme Court ruled in 2010 that political spending is a form of speech. Now, some advocates of campaign finance reform ho...

A federal judge claimed Maine's limit on super PAC contributions unconstitutional; an appeal is in the works. Meanwhile, Montana voters may have the chance to vote on a state-level corporate law change that could effectively neuter Citizens United. www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics...

What Is Public Financing? How Small-Dollar Democracy Combats Big-Money Elections Public funding for campaigns comes with specific requirements that reinforce the principles of transparency, accountability and responsiveness, thereby maintaining the integrity of the program and the...

GOOD NEWS: Seattle renewed funding for its successful Democracy Voucher Program! Public financing programs like these have proven effective in reducing the outsized role big money plays in political campaigns and making government more accountable to the people.

Unprecedented corruption, influence peddling, & intimidation. Time to amend the Constitution to demand campaign finance regulation and bar corporations from using the rights of people. Ask your Rep to co-sponsor HJR54, the We the People Amendment-learn more at movetoamend.org, wethepeoplemass.org.

The Business Community Is Extraordinarily Stupid Is a dictatorship good for business?

"The business lobby has, for all of these years, operated on a false assumption. They believed that they could slowly strip away the foundations of the House of Democracy for a quick buck, without the house ever falling down. Wrong." www.hamiltonnolan.com/p/the-busine...

How the Billionaires Took Over America Yes, Donald Trump is a threat to democracy. But the far bigger menace is the monstrous growth in wealth concentration over five decades that made a Trump presidency possible—and maybe inevitable. Here...

This was always the goal of citizens united. Campaign finance reform should be at the top of the Democrat’s platform, and they should be unabashedly pounding this message. Bernie and AOC have had great success with it.

Meanwhile the fossil fuel industry invested over $219 million to elect the current Congress and POTUS and has every expectation of payback. If we want the US to be part of that different world, we need to plug the loopholes and overturn the court decisions that enable big money political bribery.

Online Ad Spending in 2024 Election Totaled at Least $1.9 Billion The most comprehensive analysis to date shows the scale of political spending on the four largest digital platforms, as well as stark differences in strategy between candidates, parties, and outside groups.

Online platforms aren’t currently required to disclose political spending. As more political activity moves online and dark money surges to record highs, the need for more transparency is clear.
bit.ly/3TkrIc3

I love how when companies are asked to give the reasons for their political donations they nonchalantly just up front say, “oh, you know, just a little bit of bribery so we don’t get shut out of state contracts.”

Warren, Markey join Bernie Sanders and five other senators to urge Democrats to break with billionaire donors - The Boston Globe The senators are seizing on this moment of turmoil for the Democratic Party to demand that Democrats “begin cleaning our own house” by restricting the influence of wealthy donors.

They're doing the right thing by registered Democrat voters, but voters--regardless of party--are disgusted by big money donor influence. These Senators need to help clean house for all of us by filing the We the People Amendment (HJR54) in the Senate. www.bostonglobe.com/2025/06/17/n...

A push for more transparency on ballot question spending, fundraising - CommonWealth Beacon In 2024, it was hard to avoid the barrage of ads making the case for one side or the other of some ballot questions. But it was a very different story when it came to seeing who was funding the campai...

Legislation has been filed in Massachusetts to bring more transparency to ballot question spending and fundraising. commonwealthbeacon.org/politics/a-p...

No Kings, No Corporations: Rejecting Authoritarian and Corporate Rule | Common Dreams As we protest authoritarianism this Saturday—and legitimately condemn the many anti-democratic and unjust actions of Trump—let us also remember the tyranny of our corporate overlords who have been—per...

"Tyranny has many symbols. One is a red hat. The other is a corporate logo." SCOTUS decisions gave constitutional rights of real people to corporations. Amending the Constitution to win those rights back won't be easy but must happen for democracy and planet. www.commondreams.org/opinion/no-k...

Trump got the Big Oil cash he wanted so now he’s killing the planet |Will Bunch Even top climate experts are shocked at the speed with which Trump is undoing their work, after $450M in Big Oil donations.

Hey, remember when Trump told a room of Big Oil CEOs he'd make all their wildest dreams of climate denial come true...for $1B in campaign cash? Now the White House war on the environment is the Trump corruption scandal we don't talk about nearly enough

My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/trum...

Here's what a Texas oil executive from DOGE is doing inside the Interior Department A Texas oil executive from Elon Musk’s government efficiency team has been tasked with overhauling the federal agency that manages vast tracts of public lands.

Tyler Hassen, a Texas oil executive, tasked to overhaul the Interior Department without Senate approval. With deep ties to Russia, energy sector and investments, critics say Hassen role may be a tactical sidestep around oversight, raising eyebrows among lawmakers and environmentalists alike.

The most effective way to get rid of de facto political bribery is to ban it, with robust campaign finance reform empowered by a constitutional amendment to overturn Supreme Court decisions that have privileged big money donors over the people.

Dark Money Hit a Record High of $1.9 Billion in 2024 Federal Races Spending by groups that do not disclose their donors has increased and become harder to trace.

Since Citizens United, dark money groups have spent at least $4.3 billion on federal elections. Our latest analysis from
@annalecta.bsky.social tracks dark money spending in the 2024 election cycle.

Thank you to Rep. Richard Neal (@neal.house.gov) for co-sponsoring HJR 54, the We the People Amendment! Thanks also to Reps. Lynch, Pressley, and Moulton for your co-sponsor support!

Why the hands-off approach? "For a clue, we should look to high-dollar donations."

The Campaign Finance System Americans Could Have Had Canada shows how democracies can regulate campaign finance for the common good.

Less than a third of Americans are satisfied with the way our democracy works, with concerns about the role of large donors among the chief concerns. At the same time, most Canadians are happy with their system. Here’s how we got here:

Almost?