President Obama Feeling the Pressure of Citizens United
by Thom Hartmann,posted Jul 31 2012 5:38PM
President Obama will likely become the first ever incumbent President to be outraised by his opponent in his re-election bid. And in a desperate attempt to even the playing field just slightly before November – the President has been forced to hold endless fundraisers. As the Center for American Progress reveals, President Obama has already held nearly 200 fundraisers during his first term in office. To put that in perspective, George. W Bush held slightly more than 80, and President Clinton held roughly 70.
But in the post-Citizens-United era, when billionaires can dump their fortunes in to changing our elections, then politicians are forced to endlessly raise money. And it’s not just President Obama: Members of Congress are stuck in this trap, too. If the average House Member spent 40 hours a week fundraising, he or she would need to raise, on average, $367 an hour. For a Senator, $819 an hour.
This is one the biggest problem facing our democracy. We elect our representatives to go to Washington and represent our interests. But in reality what they are forced to do by our Supreme Court is fundraise, fundraise, fundraise – giving those with deep pockets more influence than average voters. To fix this – we need to get money out of politics. Go to MoveToAmend.org.
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