The Dark Money DISASTER at the Supreme Court REVEALED
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖The Citizens United decision, issued in 2010, equated money with speech and corporations with people, overturning a century of campaign finance precedent.
- ❖Billionaire spending in US elections escalated from $16 million in 2008 to an estimated $2.6 billion in 2024, demonstrating the decision's financial impact.
- ❖This influx of dark money is cited as the primary reason for legislative inaction on popular issues like gun background checks, reproductive freedom, and climate change.
- ❖Justice Clarence Thomas cast a deciding vote in Citizens United despite his wife, Jenny Thomas, receiving $500,000 from a benefactor (Harlan Crow) to create a group exploiting the ruling.
- ❖The Citizens United decision was not solely about campaign finance but was also a strategic move by groups like the National Right to Life to remove funding limits that hindered their efforts to overturn Roe v. Wade.
- ❖The threat of dark money spending can be as impactful as actual spending, creating a 'chilling effect' on politicians considering votes against powerful industry interests, such as oil and gas.
- ❖The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) is described as 'neutered,' with Republican members consistently blocking investigations, particularly those involving Trump campaigns.
- ❖Restoring faith in government requires a multi-pronged approach: a constitutional amendment to reverse Citizens United, legislative changes, a functional FEC, and Supreme Court reform.
- ❖The 'Unrigged Washington Pledge' advocates for banning congressional stock trading, refusing corporate PAC money, and cracking down on dark money to restore public trust.
Insights
1Citizens United's Core Tenets and Financial Impact
The 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court decision established that money equals speech and corporations are people, overturning a century of campaign finance precedent. This ruling opened floodgates for unlimited and undisclosed money in elections, dramatically shifting political power.
Billionaire spending in US elections increased from $16 million in 2008 to $2.6 billion in 2024. To reach $2.6 billion at a rate of $1 million/day would take seven years, compared to 16 days for $16 million.
2Policy Gridlock Despite Public Consensus
The corrosive effect of dark money, enabled by Citizens United, prevents legislative action on issues with broad public support. This includes gun background checks, reproductive freedom, and climate change, where majority American opinion is consistently ignored.
Vast majorities of Americans support background checks on gun sales and reproductive freedom, yet these policies fail to pass due to the influence of money in politics, such as threats from the NRA.
3Clarence Thomas's Undisclosed Conflict of Interest in Citizens United
Justice Clarence Thomas cast the deciding vote in the 5-4 Citizens United decision, knowing his wife, Jenny Thomas, had received a $500,000 gift from billionaire Harlan Crow to establish a group that would exploit the ruling. Thomas did not recuse himself and argued against disclosure rules.
Jenny Thomas received $500,000 from Harlan Crow to create a group leveraging the decision. Clarence Thomas, the only justice to vote against disclosure, did not recuse himself.
4Citizens United's Strategic Role in Overturning Roe v. Wade
The Citizens United decision was not solely about campaign finance but was a deliberate step in a decades-long effort by groups like the National Right to Life to remove campaign finance limits that obstructed their goal of overturning Roe v. Wade.
James Bop, central to the Citizens United decision, was a long-time consultant for the National Right to Life, which realized campaign finance limits hindered their efforts to overturn Roe v. Wade.
5Oil and Gas Industry's Return on Investment
The oil and gas industry leverages significant political spending, approximately $250 million per election cycle, to ensure favorable policies. This investment yields substantial returns, including deregulation, federal land giveaways, and the installation of industry executives in key government positions.
Prior to Citizens United, cap-and-trade was one vote away from passing, and there were 14 instances of bipartisan Senate action on climate change. Post-Citizens United, the industry's spending leads to policy giveaways worth tens to hundreds of billions of dollars.
Bottom Line
The Citizens United decision, while framed as a free speech issue, was strategically utilized by specific ideological groups, like the National Right to Life, to dismantle campaign finance barriers that impeded their long-term policy goals, such as overturning Roe v. Wade.
This reveals that the decision's impact extends beyond mere campaign finance, serving as a foundational enabler for broader ideological agendas by allowing unlimited funding for advocacy.
Advocates for campaign finance reform could frame the issue not just as one of democratic fairness, but as a critical lever for protecting other fundamental rights and policy outcomes that are currently suppressed by dark money.
The 'chilling effect' of threatened dark money spending is often as potent as actual expenditures, allowing powerful industries to dictate policy without always needing to deploy their full financial arsenal.
This means the true cost and influence of Citizens United are underestimated by only tracking spent money; the mere potential for massive opposition spending can preempt legislative challenges.
Reform efforts should focus not only on disclosure but also on mechanisms that reduce the perceived efficacy of such threats, potentially through public financing or stronger ethics enforcement that disincentivizes political intimidation.
Key Concepts
Money Equals Speech / Corporations Are People
The core legal interpretation from the Citizens United decision, asserting that campaign spending is a form of protected free speech under the First Amendment, and that corporations possess the same free speech rights as individuals. This model underpins the argument for unlimited political spending by corporate entities and wealthy donors.
Sunshine is the Best Disinfectant
A concept attributed to Louis Brandeis, suggesting that transparency and public disclosure are essential tools for preventing corruption and ensuring accountability in government and public affairs. The episode contrasts this principle with the rise of undisclosed 'dark money' in politics post-Citizens United.
Chilling Effect of Threatened Spending
The idea that the mere threat of powerful interest groups spending vast sums of money against a politician can be as effective in influencing their votes or policy positions as actual spending. This model highlights how potential financial retaliation can deter legislative action, even without direct expenditures.
Lessons
- Support a constitutional amendment to clarify that corporations are not people and money is not speech, directly countering the Citizens United decision.
- Advocate for a revitalized Federal Elections Commission (FEC) with the authority and political will to enforce campaign finance laws and investigate violations.
- Engage in local and state politics, speak out, and participate in meetings to build collective action, as public engagement is considered more powerful than money in politics.
- Support candidates who commit to the 'Unrigged Washington Pledge,' which includes banning congressional stock trading, refusing corporate PAC money, and cracking down on dark money.
Unrigging Washington: A Three-Point Pledge for Reformers
Ban Congressional Stock Trading: Prohibit members of Congress from buying and selling individual shares of stock to prevent self-dealing and conflicts of interest.
Refuse Corporate PAC Money: Commit to not accepting donations from corporate political action committees, ensuring that politicians prioritize constituents over corporate interests.
Crack Down on Dark Money: Implement robust disclosure and transparency rules to reveal the sources of political funding and eliminate the influence of undisclosed money in elections.
Notable Moments
The revelation that Justice Clarence Thomas's wife, Jenny Thomas, received a $500,000 gift from billionaire Harlan Crow to create a group to exploit the Citizens United decision, while Justice Thomas cast the deciding vote and argued against disclosure.
This directly links a Supreme Court justice to a financial benefit tied to a landmark ruling he influenced, raising serious questions about judicial ethics, conflicts of interest, and the legitimacy of the decision itself.
Quotes
"In the 2008 cycle, which was a big cycle, Barack Obama's elected president, we have a lot of hope and change... Billionaires spent $16 million in the 2008 cycle... In the 2024 election cycle, billionaires spent $2.6 billion."
"At the time of that Citizen Johnny decision in 2010, that five to four decision, a partisan decision by this Supreme Court, we now know that Clarence Thomas's wife Jenny Thomas received a gift of $500,000 to stake her in creating a group to take advantage of the decision to come."
"The Citizens United decision wasn't only about money and politics. It was actually about this decades-long effort to overturn Row and to take away fundamental rights."
"At the end of the day, the most important title in a democracy isn't president. It isn't member of Congress. It's citizen."
Q&A
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