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September 10, 2014 5:13 pm | By Rio Tazewell
Money in Politics Fuels Student Loan Debt
Wall Street has found another way to make money at the expense of our future: student loan debt. The amount of debt held by recent graduates increased an astonishing 20 percent from 2011 to 2013, reaching a total of more…
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September 10, 2014 4:23 pm | By Jen HerrickFirst day of Senate debate to #GetMoneyOut
Monday marked the first day of Senate debate on the Democracy for All amendment. Not only did it clear an important procedural hurdle, but we heard from many strong champions of getting money out and voters in, and from those…
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September 9, 2014 7:46 pm | By Layne AmerikanerNPR Highlights Poll Showing Bipartisan Support for Amendment to #GetMoneyOut
As the Senate begins debating the Democracy For All Amendment that would overturn decisions like Citizens United, NPR’s Peter Overby highlighted the strong, bipartisan public support for reforming our campaign finance system in a radio segment this morning. “When pollsters…
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September 9, 2014 7:31 pm | By Rio Tazewell
Yet Another Way Activists are Raising the Issue of Campaign Finance Reform: Photo Petition!
Participate in the photo petition at http://www.demanddemocracy.org/ Curtailing the corrupting influence of money in politics may be the most pivotal issue facing our country. Unfortunately, many people see campaign finance reform as an abstract, boring issue that doesn’t resonate with…
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September 9, 2014 6:56 pm | By BernarditaPFAW and Allies Rally, Deliver 3 Million Petitions in Support of Amendment to #GetMoneyOut
On Monday afternoon People For the American Way joined partner organizations, Senators, and Representatives in a rally outside the U.S. Capitol in support of the Democracy For All Amendment to overturn decisions like Citizens United and get big money out…
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September 9, 2014 6:51 pm | By Rio Tazewell
Republicans are Making Campaign Finance a Partisan Issue, But it Shouldn’t Be
In observing the steep partisan divide on the Democracy for All amendment – with all 55 Democrats in the Senate supporting and not a single Republican – one might conclude that campaign finance reform is a completely partisan issue. Historically…
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September 9, 2014 6:02 pm | ByThe First Amendment, According to Mitch McConnell
This post was originally published at the Huffington Post. Have you heard that Senate Democrats are working this week to repeal free speech? I did, yesterday morning, from Mitch McConnell. Have you heard that Democrats are going to go out…
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September 8, 2014 2:16 pm | By Paul GordonA New Reason to Confirm Texas Judicial Nominees This Fall
The Administrative Office of U.S. Courts this morning formally reclassified a longstanding judicial vacancy in southern Texas as a judicial emergency. That means the caseload is too high for the work to get done in a fair and efficient manner,…
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September 8, 2014 1:22 pm | By Layne Amerikaner“The Wealthy Get to Shout, But the Rest of You May Only Whisper”: Former GOP Senator Alan Simpson Calls for Amendment to #GetMoneyOut
This morning, former Republican Sen. Alan Simpson (Wyo.) and Democratic Sen. Tom Udall (N.M.) published a powerful joint op-ed in The Hill in support of the Democracy For All Amendment, a proposed constitutional amendment that would overturn decisions like Citizens…
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September 5, 2014 5:51 pm | By Bernardita2014 Midterm Elections: PFAW Holds Member Telebriefing with Political Strategist Celinda Lake
People For The American Way hosted a telebriefing Thursday evening to update PFAW members on the electoral landscape for 2014. The call, which was kicked off by PFAW President Michael Keegan and moderated by Director of Communications Drew Courtney, featured…
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September 5, 2014 2:39 pm | By IanVoters Skeptical of Arguments Against Amendment to Get Money Out of Politics
Polling evidence has consistently shown that a strong majority of American voters are opposed to the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which opened the floodgates for freewheeling spending by corporations to influence elections. Increasingly wary of the shadow big…
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September 5, 2014 1:55 pm | By Layne AmerikanerCivil Liberties Experts: Limiting Big Money In Elections Doesn’t Infringe on Free Speech Rights
This morning, six civil liberties experts released a letter emphasizing that reasonable regulations on money in elections do not violate the free speech rights guaranteed in the First Amendment. The authors — academics, philanthropists, and lawyers, all of whom are…
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September 4, 2014 9:52 pm | By Paul Gordon7th Circuit Says Arguments Against Marriage Equality “Cannot Be Taken Seriously”
Today's unanimous panel ruling by the Seventh Circuit striking down Wisconsin and Indiana's marriage bans is a well-written, carefully reasoned take-down of some of the ludicrous arguments that equality opponents have been making to defend their policy of discrimination. It…
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September 4, 2014 5:46 pm | By BernarditaWalker’s Failed Record Counters Current Ad’s Job Promise
Gov. Scott Walker released an ad Thursday morning promising that he “won’t stop until everyone who wants a job, can find a job.” This sounds strangely familiar to the empty promise of his 2010 campaign. Back then, Walker repeatedly promised…
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September 4, 2014 5:41 pm | By Paul GordonCourt Restores Voting Opportunities for Ohioans
A federal district court ruled this morning that restrictions on early voting in Ohio violate both the Fourteenth Amendment's Equal Protection Clause and the Voting Rights Act. This is a major setback for right-wing officials dedicated to making it harder…
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September 3, 2014 10:11 pm | By BernarditaLouisville PFAW Activists Deliver Petitions Supporting Democracy For All Constitutional Amendment to Mitch McConnell
On Wednesday, PFAW activists in Kentucky joined other activists representing ally organizations in delivering petition signatures to Sen. Mitch McConnell’s state office calling for amending the Constitution to overturn cases like Citizens United and get big money out of politics.…
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September 3, 2014 8:45 pm | By Paul GordonLouisiana’s Marriage Ban Is Upheld By Judge Citing “Lifestyle Choices”
Judge Martin Feldman, nominated to the Eastern District of Louisiana thirty years ago by President Reagan, today upheld that state's marriage ban against same-sex couples. But his opinion concluding that the ban is constitutional is hardly a model of rigorous…
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September 3, 2014 8:10 pm | By BernarditaWisconsin PFAW Members Protest Walker Fundraiser
On Friday morning, PFAW members gathered outside the Nakoma Golf Club in Madison, WI to protest a fundraiser held by Scott Walker. Activists held signs calling on voters to “Ship Walker Overseas, Not Jobs,” and letting Walker know that “Time…
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September 2, 2014 9:46 pm | By IanHistorian Doris Kearns Goodwin Emphasizes Importance of Amendment to Get Big Money Out of Politics
In a discussion at the National Book Festival this weekend about her recent book, The Bully Pulpit, presidential scholar and author Doris Kearns Goodwin used the opportunity to highlight the danger of big money in our democracy and the importance…
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September 2, 2014 8:50 pm | By DerekKentucky PFAW Members Protest McConnell in Zombie Fashion
This Friday, PFAW members joined allies at two events in Louisville to hold Sen. Mitch McConnell accountable for his support of big money in politics. On Friday evening, hundreds of PFAW members and other local activists joined the world’s largest…