Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Julia Brownley (D-Westlake Village) joined her colleagues in thanking Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) for holding a hearing on June 3, 2014 on a constitutional amendment that would allow Congress and the states to set reasonable limits on money in politics.
“The Supreme Court’s misguided decisions in Citizens United and McCutcheon have compounded the influence of wealthy special interests and so-called Super PACs, threatening our government ‘of the people, by the people, and for the people,’” said Congresswoman Brownley. “The current campaign finance system is broken and we need a constitutional amendment to allow Congress and states to set reasonable limits to avoid the corrupting influence of money in politics. I applaud Chairman Leahy’s commitment to returning the balance of power to the American people.”
During her time in the California Assembly, Brownley authored the California Disclose Act. In Congress, she has co-sponsored the federal DISCLOSE 2013 Act (H.R. 148), the Government By the People Act (H.R. 20), and two constitutional amendments (H.J.Res. 25 and H.J.Res. 34) to overturn the flawed Supreme Court decisions in the Citizens United and McCutcheon cases. Brownley is also an active member of the Task Force on Election Reform.
While our campaign finance laws must be reformed, Brownley also believes that districts drawn by incumbents to protect their jobs makes politicians less accountable to their constituents and more accountable to the special interests, which has eroded public trust and contributed to a deep and intractable dysfunction in Congress. California’s citizen-driven redistricting process proved that government of, for, and by the people is not only possible, but its success makes it imperative. That is why Brownley has introduced the Fair and Independent Redistricting (FAIR) Act (H.R. 2928). By helping other states form independent citizen redistricting commissions, Brownley’s bill will result in a more transparent election process and more accountable representation.
The letter can be found here.
Issues: 113th Congress, Campaign Finance Reform