An End to Campaign Finance Corruption and More
Carolyn Elliot | Published on 4/1/2021
By Carolyn Elliott, Co-chair of Money in Politics
Such a state of affairs would be music to my ears! It is possible, with the passage of the United States Senate Bill #1 (S #1), the “For the People” Act that passed the U.S. House of Representatives (HR #1) March 3rd, and was presented in the U.S. Senate on March 8th, 2021.
In brief, the campaign finance portion of this bill, which will close loopholes that have allowed foreign nationals to spend money in elections of the United States [pages 407 to 422; https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-117hr1ih/pdf/BILLS-117hr1ih.pdf]…
● will close loopholes that have allowed foreign nationals to spend money in elections of the United States
● calls for audits and reporting of illicit foreign money
- strengthens oversight of on-line political advertising
- calls for funders of ads to be clearly identified in the ads
● prohibits in election campaigns audio and visual deep-fakes, which “…use machine learning and artificial intelligence to manipulate or generate visual and audio content with a high potential to deceive"
● requires nonprofit organizations, which are often formed and used as shell companies or LLC’s for money laundering, to report all political money
-requires government contractors to report all political donations
-requires disclosure of donations for all presidential inaugural committees
To assist in S #1’s passage, you could…
●e-mail U.S. Senators Hickenlooper and Bennet right away regarding the "For the People" Act, HR#1/S#1.
●alert all your friends in other states, which have Senators who could use some influencing, because Hickenlooper and Bennet look like they will vote for this bill. Your friends could simply do an internet search for "e-mail address for Senator X."
Here is a sample letter you may use if you wish...
Dear Honorable Senator First and Last Names:
Please do all in your power to pass the "For the People" Act, which passed the U.S. House of Representatives March 3rd, 2021.
As you know, this bill will eliminate foreign nationals from trying to inject illicit money in our federal elections, while strengthening oversight of on-line political advertising, requiring funders to be visibly identified in the ads.
This bill also stops deepfakes, which "...use machine learning and artificial intelligence to manipulate or generate visual and audio content with a high potential to deceive...."
Shell companies, which are illegitimate nonprofit companies engaged in money laundering for political purposes, will be seriously restricted too.
These matters and more require the passage of the "For the People" Act. Please do all in your power to insure its passage.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Your First and Last Name
Your Town, Your State
E-mail addresses:
1. For Senator Hickenlooper, use his website https://www.hickenlooper.senate.gov/. Complete the form at the bottom of the page, copying and pasting the sample letter above, if you wish. In the "Legislative Issue" box, click on "Campaign/Election Reform."
2. For Senator Bennet, use his website https://www.bennet.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/write-to-michael. Scroll down to the section "Write to Michael," fill in the blanks, and copy and paste the sample letter above, if you wish. For "Topic," click on "Campaign Finance Reform." For "Message Subject," type "The "For the People" Act."