Forum Post: Move To Amend Announcement Tomorrow
Posted 11 years ago on Feb. 10, 2013, 7 p.m. EST by OTP
(-203)
from Tampa, FL
This content is user submitted and not an official statement
We told you there was big news coming and here it is:
Tomorrow, (Mon, Feb 11) Move to Amend's WE THE PEOPLE AMENDMENT will be introduced in Congress! The We the People Amendment is the only amendment that deals with both Supreme Court doctrines that grant constitutional rights to artificial entities and that define spending money as free speech.
There are still many steps along the way, but this is a major milestone for the movement to amend!
Move to Amend will not now become a Congressional lobbying effort (not at this point). In fact now more than ever it is critical that we reach and educate the American people -- letting them know that there is a movement to get corporations out of our Constitution and big money out of our political process, and getting them involved.
What you can do:
On Monday go to http://WeThePeopleAmendment.org for photos, video and updates on the coverage of the amendment drop. SHARE THESE UPDATES WITH YOUR FRIENDS via Facebook, Twitter and email! Let's make this viral!
Ben Manski will be on Reddit.com at 1pm Eastern / 10am Pacific doing an "Ask Me Anything" interview about the We the People Amendment and Move to Amend. Tune in!
Ask your friends to sign the Move to Amend petition to get involved in the campaign.
If you're not already active in Move to Amend -- now's the time. Sign up to volunteer with an existing local MTA group or start one in your community.
Make a donation to Move to Amend to support our work. We are a grassroots organization supported by donations from individuals like you. We are proud of this significant success, but you won't see us resting on our laurels in the weeks and months to come. We know there is still work to do to ensure victory and we know you are with us to see it through to the end. Thanks for that!
Yours for democracy,
Ashley Sanders, Ben Manski, Daniel Lee, David Cobb, Egberto Willies, George Friday, Jerome Scott, Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, Laura Bonham, Nancy Price
Move to Amend National Leadership Team
PS -- Don't forget to tune in tomorrow for coverage on the amendment drop at http://WeThePeopleAmendment.org. We need all hands on deck to help spread the word and make this announcement viral!
MOVE TO AMEND
PO Box 610, Eureka CA 95502 | (707) 269-0984 | www.MoveToAmend.org
Constitutional Amendment XXVIII Introduced in Congress
Ensuring Rights for People, Not Corporations
by Rep. Rick Nolan (D-MN) & Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) Feb 11, 2013
Section 1. [Artificial Entities Such as Corporations Do Not Have Constitutional Rights] The rights protected by the Constitution of the United States are the rights of natural persons only. Artificial entities established by the laws of any State, the United States, or any foreign state shall have no rights under this Constitution and are subject to regulation by the People, through Federal, State, or local law. The privileges of artificial entities shall be determined by the People, through Federal, State, or local law, and shall not be construed to be inherent or inalienable.
Section 2. [Money is Not Free Speech] Federal, State, and local government shall regulate, limit, or prohibit contributions and expenditures, including a candidate's own contributions and expenditures, to ensure that all citizens, regardless of their economic status, have access to the political process, and that no person gains, as a result of their money, substantially more access or ability to influence in any way the election of any candidate for public office or any ballot measure. Federal, State, and local government shall require that any permissible contributions and expenditures be publicly disclosed. The judiciary shall not construe the spending of money to influence elections to be speech under the First Amendment.
Constitutional Amendment Introduced in Congress Ensuring Rights for People, Not Corporations by Rep. Rick Nolan (D-MN) & Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI)
Respond to Hundreds of Local Resolutions Calling for “We the People” Amendment - The movement for constitutional reforms that would end what organizers call “corporate rule” has arrived in the chambers of Congress. This morning, two members of the U.S. House of Representatives joined Move to Amend by announcing their sponsorship of the “We the People” Amendment, which clearly and unequivocally states that: Rights recognized under the Constitution belong to human beings only, and not to government-created artificial legal entities such as corporations and limited liability companies; and
Political campaign spending is not a form of speech protected under the First Amendment.
In making the announcement, lead sponsor Rep. Rick Nolan, said: “It’s time to take the shaping and molding of public policy out of corporate boardrooms, away from the corporate lobbyists, and put it back in city halls – back with county boards and state legislatures – and back in the Congress where it belongs.”
Ben Manski, a spokesperson for Move to Amend, agreed, saying: “Today, members of Congress join a movement that insists on the fundamental equality of all Americans, and that rejects the idea that the corporate class should have special protections against We the People.” The Move to Amend coalition was formed in 2009 in preparation for the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision. Today, the coalition of nearly 260,000 people and hundreds of organizations has helped to pass nearly 500 resolutions in municipalities and local governments across the country calling on the state and federal governments to adopt this amendment. The Move to Amend coalition makes a point of differentiating themselves from the other proposals that have come forward in response to Citizens United. "In every single community where Americans have had the opportunity to call for a Constitutional amendment to outlaw corporate personhood, they have seized it and voted yes overwhelmingly, stated George Friday, Move to Amend spokesperson. “The Citizens United decision is not the cause, it is a symptom. We must remove big money and special interests from the legal and political process entirely."
OWS Amendment site
http://corporationsarenotpeople.webuda.com
this opens the door to laws that can eliminate the corporations & the rich buying our democracy - see our OWS site
Thanks for this post...hopeful news!
the corps control who gets paid
Latest Email:
We are celebrating a historic moment: This week Move to Amend's WE THE PEOPLE AMENDMENT was introduced in Congress!
Our Congressional partners are Rick Nolan (MN) and Mark Pocan (WI). Representatives Nolan and Pocan are the first Congresspeople to stand up for the only solution that will return government control to “we the people.” We thank them for supporting Move to Amend’s effort and for their commitment to American democracy.
Please support Move to Amend by making a donation towards our work.
The We the People Amendment is neither the first amendment which addresses Citizens United, nor will it be the last to be introduced in this session of Congress. However, it is the only amendment that deals with myriad Supreme Court decisions granting constitutional rights to corporations and defining money as speech.
The introduction of the We the People Amendment is a momentous opportunity to shine a spotlight on corporate rule and bring others to the Move to Amend cause. Welcome to all of the thousands of new people who have signed up this week to participate in the cause!
Please support Move to Amend by making a donation towards our work.
We know that much education is still required inside and outside the halls of Congress. Although our movement is rapidly growing, it is still to reach critical mass -- the mass necessary to force action in Washington DC. Local organizing around local and state resolutions and initiatives remains foremost in our strategy.
Stay tuned to hear more about how to support the We the People Amendment through grassroots action; and how we can work together to build a movement to make real the promise of American democracy.
We have reached this milestone faster than we believed we would. Thank you for making this possible. Please make a donation now to help us keep the momentum up.
Yours for democracy,
Ashley Sanders, Ben Manski, Daniel Lee, David Cobb, Egberto Willies, George Friday, Jerome Scott, Kaitlin Sopoci-Belknap, Laura Bonham, Nancy Price
Move to Amend National Leadership Team
PS -- Tune in to Move to Amend Reports this evening to learn more. Our internet radio program airs tonight on Blog Talk Radio at 5pm Pacific / 8pm Eastern. The guest is Ben Manski, Move to Amend National Leadership Team member. He will speak about the implications of the We the People Amendment. The line will be open to take your questions.
PPS -- Please take a moment to thank Rep. Nolan and Pocan for standing with Move to Amend: Rick Nolan's Facebook page is here and Mark Pocan's page is here. Or, if you live in their Districts, you can thank them directly through their Congressional websites here: Nolan and Pocan.
Short and simple, perhaps too simple?
Thoughts?
https://movetoamend.org/wethepeopleamendment