According to Gallup fifty-seven percent of Americans consider campaign donations to be a protected form of free speech, and 55% say corporate and union donations should be treated the same way under the law as donations from individuals are.
But, not Barack Obama. America’s radical anti-business president attacked the Supreme Court’s decision this week that abolished some decades-old restrictions on corporate political activity.
The Hill reported:
In his weekly address, President Barack Obama hammered the Supreme Court’s decision this week to lift limits on corporate spending on politics, saying it could lead to the unchecked influence of special interests he opposes.
The president harkened back to his 2008 campaign, in which he derided special interest groups and lobbyists and claimed victory over them after his first year in office. The decision this week, Obama warned, could undo that progress.
“This week, the United States Supreme Court handed a huge victory to the special interests and their lobbyists – and a powerful blow to our efforts to rein in corporate influence,” he said of the Court’s ruling in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. “This ruling strikes at our democracy itself.”
The court’s 5-4 ruling handed down on Thursday dealt a heavy blow to Obama and Democrats, who favor existing caps on corporate spending on politics.
The decision struck down the distinction between individual and corporate expenditures. That could allow corporations and unions to spend an unlimited amount of money on candidates they support or oppose. The court, however, left in place disclosure requirements for corporate and union contributions.
Most Republicans hailed the decision as one that promotes freedom of speech and that could allow for increased spending by political parties.
What a shock. After the stock market suffered its worst week since last March Barack Obama once again used his weekly address to attack American business.
Is it any wonder that 77% of investors believe this president is anti-business?
Bill Hennessy has more on the president’s unimaginable hubris.
More… Jammie Wearing Fool adds: “The Man Who Spent a Billion Dollars to Get Elected Laments More Money in Politics.”