Category | Op Ed

Supreme Court fails

Published on January 26, 2010 by Kevin Hagler

I am reminded of the so-called “corporate flag” of America. In place of the 50 stars famously symbolizing the 50 states of the Union are 30 logos of the largest corporations in the U.S. - some of which are subsidiaries of the same conglomerates. The flag is even more powerful when many go a step further and add “SOLD” in big block, capital letters on the remaining area and in a typeface which suggests that the word was ferociously stamped on.

In a slim 5-4 decision on Thursday, the Supreme Court of the United States granted corporations and most likely labor unions, the right to spend unlimited amounts of money for political campaign ads. The decision was shockingly justified from the protection of the First Amendment and overturned aspects of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 - championed by that of Senators John McCain and Russ Feingold - as well as more than a century of campaign finance laws.

The concept of democracy was to give more power and autonomy to those who did not originally have it. This decision undermines the very form of democratic government that celebrates the individual freedoms we cherish. President Teddy Roosevelt said it best in his State of the Union Address in 1905: “There is no enemy of free government more dangerous and none so insidious as the corruption of the electorate.” As a champion of limiting the power of corporations and special interests through what is now known as The Square Deal, Roosevelt was referring to the gross differentiation between the political power and clout of large corporations and trusts to that of the average, already disenfranchised voter.

On my radio program, I interviewed John Perkins, a self-proclaimed economic hit-man (EHM). His past entails traveling from country to country representing corporate interests as a chief economist only to take advantage of a country’s natural resources and burden them with debt. Before he quit his job as an EHM, he said what gave him the power to do so was his ties to what he calls the “corporatocracy” - an entity including not only the private sector, but also the public sector which heavily supports private corporations and their own interests over those of the people.  When asked whether his thoughts could be in line with that of a conspiracy-theory, he responded by saying that there are no conspirators, as they do not work behind closed doors.

I am not sure about any “corporatocracy,” but I can tell you that the Supreme Court blatantly decided this case in favor of special interests while in the open, not behind closed doors. I am not sure what the Court, or rather the five members in the majority, were thinking when they gave the same rights to corporations that we have as American citizens, but I can tell you most assuredly that special interests are not human beings, and money is not free speech.

I can only imagine what the Founding Fathers would think of the recent decision. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson wrote a declaration claiming independence from the Powers-that-Be to give people, or more accurately, individual human beings, inalienable rights. Thomas Paine’s famous treatise in 1791 is entitled “Rights of Man,” not “Rights of Special Interests and Multi-billion Dollar Conglomerates.”

Teddy Roosevelt was probably turning in his grave when the Court read the majority opinion. Much of what we worked for at the turn of the last century has now been gutted, along with the freedom of individuals. What’s next? Corporations having the right to vote and bear arms? There is absolutely no way individuals can compete with corporations loaded with mountains of capital and the power to influence our elections, policies and governance. This decision was a huge blow to democracy and an even larger blow to our freedom and autonomy.

The American flag has been changed several times since the signing of the Declaration. But after this decision I’m afraid  that the corporate flag may be the most accurate one.

Kevin is a senior who studies economics and finance. Catch him Sundays when he hosts “The Great American Culture Clash” from 11 a.m. to 1p.m. on www.ksuradio.com.