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119-503: RPA is an umbrella organization for progressives and leftists, regardless of political party. RPA members include voters registered as Democrats, Greens, and Independents. Similarly, RPA electeds include Democrats, Greens, and Independents. RPA mostly focuses on local elections. RPA routinely wins seats on the Richmond City Council . Richmond has non-partisan elections , which helps groups like RPA win and wield power. This

238-447: A capital strike and Congress passed a law banning the practice. In 2010, RPA negotiated with Chevron to contribute millions of dollars for the city to reinvest in itself instead of facing Measure T which would have forced a change in the utility tax which would have made them potentially contribute more. In 2012, RPA member Jeff Ritterman proposed Measure N, a tax on sugary drinks . Community Coalition Against Beverage Taxes, funded by

357-487: A soda tax ballot measure , to combat childhood diabetes, that eventually failed to pass. Jim Rogers popularly known as "The People's Lawyer", was a city councilmember for the city of Richmond, California . He was first elected in 2002, and his final term expired in January 2015. He is a Democrat . From 1994 to 1998 he was a member of the board of supervisors of Contra Costa County , California. Harpreet Singh Sandhu

476-414: A 2020 report from OpenSecrets , between 2010 and 2020, the ten largest donors and their spouses spent a total of $ 1.2 billion on federal elections. In the 2018 elections, this group accounted for around 7% of all election-related giving, up from less than 1% a decade prior. Over the decade, election-related spending by non-partisan independent groups jumped to $ 4.5 billion, whereas from 1990 to 2010

595-570: A Green and a Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member, won a city council seat in Richmond . They were the first RPA member to do so. In 2005, RPA supported transfer of the former Zeneca site at Campus Bay to the California Department of Toxic Substances Control . In the 2006 Richmond, California municipal elections , Gayle McLaughlin won the election for mayor against incumbent Democrat Irma Anderson . This made Richmond

714-508: A book was being published ... and it was critical of a candidate, that [the government] could stop publication". According to a 2012 retrospective article in The New Yorker by Jeffrey Toobin , the court planned to rule on the narrow question that had originally been presented: Can Citizens United show the film? At the conference among the justices after oral argument, the vote was 5–4 in favor of Citizens United being allowed to show

833-530: A broad prohibition of independent expenditures by corporations in ballot initiatives and referendums. The majority argued that the First Amendment purposefully keeps the government from "rationing" speech and interfering in the marketplace of ideas , and it is not up to legislatures or courts to create a sense of "fairness" by restricting speech. On the other hand, the court found that BCRA Sections 201 and 311, which require disclosure of information of

952-500: A business corporation as merely another way that individuals might choose to organize their association with one another to pursue their common expressive aims is worse than unrealistic; it obscures the very real injustice and distortion entailed in the phenomenon of some people using other people's money to support candidates they have made no decision to support, or to oppose candidates they have made no decision to oppose." Cass Sunstein of Harvard University listed Citizens United as

1071-487: A case-by-case basis. Thomas's primary argument was that anonymous free speech is protected by the First Amendment and that making contributor lists public makes the contributors vulnerable to retaliation. Thomas also expressed concern that such retaliation could extend to retaliation by elected officials. A dissenting opinion by Justice John Paul Stevens was joined by Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg , Stephen Breyer , and Sonia Sotomayor . To emphasize his unhappiness with

1190-484: A film that was critical of Hillary Clinton , and to air the movie on DirecTV . The FEC found this plan to be in violation of the BCRA, including Section 203 which defined an "electioneering communication" as a broadcast, cable, or satellite communication that mentioned a candidate within 60 days of a general election or 30 days of a primary, and prohibited such expenditures by corporations and labor unions. The FEC prohibited

1309-449: A general election. The FEC dismissed the complaint after finding no evidence that advertisements featuring a candidate within the proscribed time limits had actually been made. In response, Citizens United produced the documentary Celsius 41.11 , which is highly critical of both Fahrenheit 9/11 and 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry . The FEC, however, held that showing Celsius 41.11 and advertisements for it would violate

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1428-536: A member of the Commission on Federal Ethics Law Reform , wrote that "The history of campaign finance reform is the history of incumbent politicians seeking to muzzle speakers, any speakers, particularly those who might publicly criticize them and their legislation. It is a lot easier to legislate against unions, gun owners, 'fat cat' bankers, health insurance companies and any other industry or 'special interest' group when they can't talk back." The editorial board of

1547-606: A nearly 105 million US dollar renovation of the Richmond Civic Center. 2004 saw the city's council majority endorsement of a casino at Point Molate. In 2006 the city council voted to drop its membership in the Richmond City Council. Richmond was the first city in California to do so, and in the country second behind only Chicago. Mentioning the word "reparations", this story was picked up by

1666-467: A petition of 600 residents citing health concerns from the 1 million tons of coal, nearly 268 thousand tons of petcoke and nearly 156 thousand tons of scrap metal shipped and stored in the city in 2018. Also this year, the city fired its city manager by a vote of 4–3 Carlos Martinez citing "unfair labor practices" and the ire of the city's unions. Ben Choi has been the vice mayor and a city councilman of Richmond, California since 2019. The 2000s saw

1785-493: A portion of the 2003 precedent McConnell v. FEC that upheld the BCRA restriction of corporate spending on electioneering communications. The majority also held that the free press clause of the First Amendment protects associations of individuals in addition to individual speakers, and further that the First Amendment does not allow prohibitions of speech based on the identity of the speaker. Corporations, as associations of individuals, therefore have free speech rights under

1904-446: A result of the court's decision. Three wrote that the effects would be minimal or positive: Christopher Cotton wrote that "There may be very little difference between seeing eight ads or seeing nine ads... And, voters recognize that richer candidates are not necessarily the better candidates, and in some cases, the benefit of running more ads is offset by the negative signal that spending a lot of money creates. Eugene Volokh stated that

2023-419: Is CEO of an insurance company. He supported the casino and hotel project at Point Molate. George Livingston was an American politician who served as the first elected African American mayor of Richmond, California , from 1985 to 1993. Livingston was appointed Mayor in 1985 by the city council . He won election as Richmond's first elected African American mayor in 1989 for a full term. George Carroll

2142-616: Is a Sikh American politician and community activist from Richmond, California and one of the most prominent ones of the Sikh religion. He was the first Asian and the first Sikh city councilman in Richmond, and one of only a few Sikhs to hold office in the United States. He lost reelection in 2008. Tony K. Thurmond is an American politician who is the 28th and current California State Superintendent of Public Instruction . Thurmond

2261-502: Is a cardiologist, politician, and activist from Richmond, California . He is currently vice president of the board of for the San Francisco Bay Area chapter of Physicians for Social Responsibility From 1981 to 2010 he worked at Kaiser Permanente 's Richmond Medical Center where he rose to the position of chief cardiologist. From 2008 to 2012 he was a city councilman for the Richmond City Council, where he proposed

2380-472: Is a tremendous victory, not only for Citizens United but for every American who desires to participate in the political process." Republican politicians and advisors universally praised the Supreme Court's decision. According to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell , "For too long, some in this country have been deprived of full participation in the political process. With today's monumental decision,

2499-559: Is similar to Progressive Dane . Richmond also elected all city council seats on a top-3 city-wide basis, which empowered RPA. In 2020, Richmond adopted single-member districts for its city council. In 2024, Richmond's mayor and city council voted to send a ranked-choice (instant-runoff) voting measure to voters. RPA supports higher taxes and lower pollution for the local Chevron refinery; opposition to racial profiling; and opposition to urban casino development in Point Molate. During

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2618-486: Is the wrong way to counterbalance that influence." President Barack Obama stated that the decision "gives the special interests and their lobbyists even more power in Washington—while undermining the influence of average Americans who make small contributions to support their preferred candidates". Obama later stated that "this ruling strikes at our democracy itself" and "I can't think of anything more devastating to

2737-483: The San Antonio Express-News praised the ruling for overturning the BCRA exception for media corporations from the ban on corporate electioneering, writing that it "makes no sense" that the paper could make endorsements up until the day of the election but advocacy groups could not. "While the influence of money on the political process is troubling and sometimes corrupting, abridging political speech

2856-556: The San Francisco Chronicle and carried in papers in Salt Lake City, Utah and Bluffton, South Carolina . As part of the "Consent calendar" at the 1 March 2005 meeting, the city council adopted an ordinance, sponsored by Mindell Penn and María Viramontes, to divest city funds from financial institutions linked to slavery. In 2009 the council was reduced in size from nine to seven seats in order to save

2975-558: The 2004 presidential campaign , the organization filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) charging that advertisements for Michael Moore 's film Fahrenheit 9/11 , a docudrama critical of the Bush administration's response to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 , constituted political advertising and thus could not be aired within the 30 days before a primary election or 60 days before

3094-517: The 2008 Democratic primaries ; however, Citizens United would be able to broadcast the advertisements for the film as they fell in the "safe harbor of the FEC's prohibition regulations". In accordance with the special rules in BCRA, Citizens United appealed the District Court decision directly to the U.S. Supreme Court . Arguments before the Supreme Court began on March 24, 2009. During

3213-484: The American Beverage Association , spent $ 2.4 million to defeat it. It was rejected by 66.9% of voters. In 2014, Richmond municipal elections attracted national media attention, as they were seen as a "David versus Goliath" race in the wake of the 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court case . Chevron spent about $ 3.1 million to support its own slate of candidates and break progressive control of

3332-763: The Cato Institute disagreed with the idea "that corporations had so much money that their spending would create vast inequalities in speech that would undermine democracy". Law professor Bradley A. Smith – former chairman of the FEC and founder of the Institute for Free Speech – wrote that the opponents of political free speech are "incumbent politicians" who "are keen to maintain a chokehold on such speech". Empowering "small and midsize corporations—and every incorporated mom-and-pop falafel joint, local firefighters' union, and environmental group—to make its voice heard" frightens them. Campaign finance expert Jan Baran,

3451-518: The Federal Election Campaign Act , because Citizens United was not a bona fide commercial film maker. In the wake of these decisions, Citizens United sought to establish itself as a bona fide commercial filmmaker before the 2008 elections, producing several documentary films. During the 2008 political primary season , it sought to run three television advertisements to promote its political documentary Hillary: The Movie ,

3570-537: The Point Molate casino, however in 2010 she supported the project, that was later turned down by Richmond voters for the former naval fuel depot. In 2004 she again voted against a casino proposal by Upstream and its partner Harrah's . In 2005 she proposed a measure with John Márquez to declare a state of emergency over the city's high crime rate which she compared to a "war zone" something opposed by then-mayor Irma Anderson citing that such situations involve

3689-583: The Supreme Court of the United States regarding campaign finance laws and free speech under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution . The court held 5–4 that the freedom of speech clause of the First Amendment prohibits the government from restricting independent expenditures for political campaigns by corporations including for-profits, nonprofit organizations , labor unions , and other kinds of associations. The majority held that

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3808-553: The "furthest from the core of political expression" protected by the Constitution, he argued, citing Federal Election Commission v. Beaumont . According to Stevens, corporate spending on political advertising should be regulated as a business transaction, and evaluated on whether it conforms to the wishes of shareholders. The Citizens United ruling represented a turning point on campaign finance, allowing unlimited election spending by corporations and labor unions, and setting

3927-407: The "most influential actors in most political campaigns" are media corporations which "overtly editorialize for and against candidates, and also influence elections by choosing what to cover and how to cover it". Holding that corporations like Exxon would fear alienating voters by supporting candidates, the decision really meant that voters would hear "more messages from more sources". According to

4046-557: The "most serious threat to American democracy in a generation". The Christian Science Monitor wrote that the court had declared "outright that corporate expenditures cannot corrupt elected officials, that influence over lawmakers is not corruption, and that appearance of influence will not undermine public faith in our democracy". An ABC– Washington Post poll conducted shortly after the Citizens United ruling showed that 80% of those surveyed opposed (and 65% strongly opposed)

4165-435: The "worst Supreme Court decision since 1960", noting that the decision is "undermining our system of democracy itself." The New York Times stated in an editorial, "The Supreme Court has handed lobbyists a new weapon. A lobbyist can now tell any elected official: if you vote wrong, my company, labor union or interest group will spend unlimited sums explicitly advertising against your re-election." Jonathan Alter called it

4284-934: The 2000s and 2010s, the alliance altered the balance of power in the city and reduced the representation of Chevron-backed candidates. RPA increased school funding, ended cooperation with ICE for non-criminals, and enacted Ban the Box . While RPA has been in power, Richmond saw a 75% decrease in homicide. Taxes on Chevron, supported by RPA, amounted to $ 204 million, which RPA invested in social programs. Notable members include Gayle McLaughlin and Jovanka Beckles . In 2003 or 2004, an "unlikely group of Greens, Latinos, progressive Democrats, African Americans, and free spirits" founded RPA. Co-founders included Gayle McLaughlin , Marilyn Langlois, and Andrés Soto. McLaughlin cited Peter Camejo 's run in 2002 as Green Party candidate for Governor of California as their inspiration for getting involved in politics. In 2004, RPA member Gayle McLaughlin,

4403-663: The 30-second advertisement for the movie, and to enjoin the Federal Election Commission from enforcing its regulations. Citizens United also argued that the commission's disclosure and disclaimer requirements were unconstitutional as applied to the movie pursuant to the Supreme Court decision in Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc. and sought to enjoin those requirements as well. In accordance with Section 403 of

4522-546: The BCRA, a three-judge panel was convened to hear the case. On January 15, 2008, the court denied the Citizens United motion for a preliminary injunction, finding that the suit had little chance of success because the movie had no reasonable interpretation other than as an appeal to vote against Hillary Clinton. Therefore the film was an item of express advocacy, not entitled to exemption from the ban on corporate funding of electioneering communications. The court held that

4641-591: The Constitution. The majority criticized Austin's reasoning that the "distorting effect" of large corporate expenditures constituted a risk of corruption or the appearance of corruption . Rather, the majority argued that the government had no place in determining whether large expenditures distorted an audience's perceptions, and that the type of "corruption" that might justify government controls on spending for speech had to relate to some form of " quid pro quo " transaction in which politicians favored corporations from whom they received donations. The court also overruled

4760-488: The First Amendment does not distinguish between media and other corporations, the BCRA restrictions improperly allowed Congress to suppress political speech in newspapers, books, television, and blogs. Consequently, "There is no such thing as too much speech." The court overturned the 1990 precedent Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce , which had held that a state law that prohibited corporations from using money to support or oppose candidates in elections did not violate

4879-430: The First Amendment. Because spending money is essential to disseminating speech, as established in the 1976 precedent Buckley v. Valeo , limiting a corporation's ability to spend money is unconstitutional by limiting the ability of its members to associate effectively and to speak on political issues. The court's opinion relied heavily on Buckley and First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti , in which it struck down

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4998-502: The National Guard and suspending civil rights, ultimately her proposal was voted down. In 2006 she supported spending $ US 30,000 on taxi script for low income residents. Also in 2010 she was voted out along with Ludmyrna López and replaced by Corky Boozé and Jovanka Beckels – both of whom campaigned on anti-casino platforms and Boozé in particular was a vocal critic of Viramontes. Furthermore, that year she vehemently supported

5117-667: The RPA. RPA's rent control measure passed, which soured relations between RPA and mayor Butt, who opposed the measure. In 2017, RPA endorsed three members for McLaughlin's empty seat, including Langlois and Ada Recinos. In a surprising decision, the council picked Recinos over Langlois. In 2018, McLaughlin created the California Progressive Alliance, a statewide offshoot of the RPA which endorses progressive candidates for state and federal elections. McLaughlin ran for Lieutenant Governor of California , but lost. In

5236-541: The Supreme Court in McConnell v. FEC (2003) had found the disclosure requirements of the BCRA constitutional, while the Wisconsin Right to Life precedent was not relevant because it only addressed speech that was not considered express advocacy. On July 18, 2008, the District Court ruled that Section 203 of the BCRA prohibited Citizens United from paying to have the film shown on television within 30 days of

5355-646: The Supreme Court must sometimes overrule prior decisions. Had prior courts never gone against precedent, for example, "segregation would be legal, minimum wage laws would be unconstitutional, and the Government could wiretap ordinary criminal suspects without first obtaining warrants". Roberts's concurrence recited a plethora of case law in which the court had ruled against precedent. Ultimately, Roberts argued that " stare decisis... counsels deference to past mistakes, but provides no justification for making new ones". Roberts also briefly explained his reasoning for joining

5474-426: The Supreme Court ruling, resulted in somewhat different conclusions. The poll found that 57% of those surveyed "agreed that money given to political candidates is a form of free speech" and 55% percent agreed that the "same rules should apply to individuals, corporations and unions". In the same poll, however, 52% of respondents supported limits on campaign contributions over financial support of campaigns and 76% thought

5593-455: The Supreme Court ruling. Polling conducted by Ipsos in 2017 found that 48% of Americans oppose the decision and 30% support it, with the remainder having no opinion. The poll also found that 57% percent of Americans favored "limits on the amount of money super PACs can raise and spend". In February 2010, shortly after the Supreme Court ruling, Senator Charles E. Schumer and Representative Chris Van Hollen outlined legislation aimed at undoing

5712-461: The Supreme Court took an important step in the direction of restoring the First Amendment rights of these groups by ruling that the Constitution protects their right to express themselves about political candidates and issues up until Election Day. By previously denying this right, the government was picking winners and losers. Our democracy depends upon free speech, not just for some but for all." Republican campaign consultant Ed Rollins opined that

5831-421: The Supreme Court's decision. Most of these are non-binding resolutions, but three states—Vermont, California, and Illinois—called for an Article V Convention to draft and propose a federal constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United . (Thirty-four states are needed to call an Article V convention.) In Minnesota , the state senate passed a similar resolution but it did not survive further discussions by

5950-450: The amounts of union and corporate money that's going to go into political campaigns". McCain was "disappointed by the decision of the Supreme Court and the lifting of the limits on corporate and union contributions" but not surprised by the decision, saying that "It was clear that Justice Roberts, Alito and Scalia, by their very skeptical and even sarcastic comments, were very much opposed to BCRA." Consumer activist Ralph Nader condemned

6069-414: The ballot box. After the 2007–2008 financial crisis , Richmond saw extensive foreclosures. In 2008, Richmond began fining banks $ 1000 per day if they failed to maintain their property, and had collected $ 1.5 million by 2014. In 2014, RPA and McLaughlin supported an underwater mortgage bailout program which would use eminent domain to obtain better terms for underwater homeowners; however, banks threatened

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6188-431: The beginning of the decade the city council lineup was as follows: mayor Irma L. Anderson with vice mayor Jim Rogers and councilpersons Nathaniel Bates , Thomas K. Butt , Richard L. Griffin , John Márquez , Gayle McLaughlin , Mindell L. Penn , and María Viramontes. During this decade the city managed to dig itself out of a 35 million US dollar deficit with crippling cuts to city services and 200 city job layoffs to

6307-558: The camera shifted to a shot of the Supreme Court Justices in the front row directly in front of the President while he was making this statement, and Justice Samuel Alito mouthed the words "Not true". Democratic Senator Russ Feingold , a lead sponsor of the BCRA, stated "This decision was a terrible mistake. Presented with a relatively narrow legal issue, the Supreme Court chose to roll back laws that have limited

6426-401: The case. The re-argument was one of the first attended by Justice Sonia Sotomayor , who had replaced Souter in the interim. It was also the first case argued by then-Solicitor General and future Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan . Former Solicitor General Ted Olson and First Amendment lawyer Floyd Abrams argued for Citizens United, and another former Solicitor General Seth Waxman defended

6545-469: The city needed to overhaul the process entirely to make it more democratic. Her campaign manager and vocal community activist Juan Reardon called the new ordinance a "travesty." The council has been noted in the media for frivolous and unproductive bickering, especially between Tom Butt and María Viramontes. The council has been noted for having two distinct and opposing factions consisting of: Viramontes, López, Sandhu and sometimes Bates which conflicts with

6664-484: The city of Richmond, California . The council consists of the Mayor of Richmond and six other city council members, one designated Vice Mayor. The council members are all elected from the whole city; no members are elected by district or ward. The council members are elected to four-year terms, as opposed to the previous six-year terms. They are not all elected at once. The council members meet every first and third Tuesday of

6783-671: The city salary costs. From 2006 to 2010 Ludmyrna "Myrna" López was on the city council, she was criticized as a rubber stamp for Chevron and the developers such as the Point Molate Casino by Andrés Soto while she promoted jobs and education for the most part. She criticized the Richmond Progressive Alliance for not accepting corporate donations while not interfering with mass mailers sent out in opposition to Measure U an advisory ballot measure to approve of or disapprove of an Indian gaming casino at

6902-561: The city was mulling (and expected to pass) banning coal storage in box cars and at its Levin Terminal giving the business 3 years to transition to alternate business practices whilst not banning the transport of coal through the city itself. It amounts to blocking 25% of the United States coal exports from the West Coast worldwide, mostly to China and other Asian countries. It was opposed by the coal and storage industries but supported by

7021-468: The city's mining ordinance expired leaving the city's quarries and abandoned mines regulation up to the state, something councilman Tom Butt tried to ameliorate in 2006 with a new ordinance which caused conflicts with the city attorney John Eastman. He was a councilman from 1982 to 1993 and ran for mayor in 2010 unsuccessfully against Gayle McGlaughlin who won. He lives in the North & East District and

7140-466: The community. This led to the passage of an ordinance allowing anyone who can obtain 20 registered voters to sign a petition in their favor to be able to register with the city for a vacant seat. The petition was added to get the vote of council member Nate Bates, who considered passing the law without such a requirement would turn the city council appointments into an American Idol style circus. Mayor McLaughlin voted against this measure since she thought

7259-531: The corporate donations gained by their opponents. While the long-term legacy of this case remains to be seen, an early study by one political scientist has concluded that Citizens United worked in favor of the electoral success of Republican candidates. The Citizens United ruling was highly controversial and remains a subject of widespread public discussion. Citizens United , upon its victory, said "Today's U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing Citizens United to air its documentary films and advertisements

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7378-422: The corporate expenditure ban have been nonprofit advocacy organizations across the political spectrum." Hans A. von Spakovsky – of The Heritage Foundation and former member of the Federal Election Commission – said "The Supreme Court has restored a part of the First Amendment that had been unfortunately stolen by Congress and a previously wrongly-decided ruling of the court." John Samples and Ilya Shapiro of

7497-481: The corporation's interest in making profits, and citizens can see whether elected officials are "in the pocket" of so-called moneyed interests ... This transparency enables the electorate to make informed decisions and give proper weight to different speakers and messages. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote a separate concurring opinion "to address the important principles of judicial restraint and stare decisis implicated in this case". Roberts explained why

7616-510: The council, which was more than Chevron had spent in total on all US Congress races from 2008 to 2012. According to McLaughlin, Chevron "bought up every billboard in town". In the mayoral election, RPA endorsed Mike Parker for Richmond mayor. However, Parker withdrew from the race in August and endorsed Tom Butt , in order to avoid splitting the left and center-left vote. Butt beat Chevron's mayoral candidate, Nat Bates , with more than 51 percent of

7735-404: The court addressed a question not raised by the litigants when it found BCRA Section 203 to be facially unconstitutional, and that the majority "changed the case to give themselves an opportunity to change the law". Stevens argued that the court had long recognized that to deny Congress the power to safeguard against "the improper use of money to influence the result [of an election] is to deny to

7854-513: The court's ruling represented "a rejection of the common sense of the American people, who have recognized a need to prevent corporations from undermining self government". The decision remains highly controversial, generating much public discussion and receiving strong support or opposition from various politicians, commentators, and advocacy groups. Senator Mitch McConnell commended the decision, arguing that it represented "an important step in

7973-544: The decision adds transparency to the election process and will make it more competitive. Campaign finance attorney Cleta Mitchell, who had filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of two advocacy organizations supporting Citizens United, wrote that "The Supreme Court has correctly eliminated a constitutionally flawed system that allowed media corporations... to freely disseminate their opinions about candidates using corporate treasury funds, while denying that constitutional privilege to Susie's Flower Shop Inc. ... The real victims of

8092-630: The decision by means of constitutional amendment. Representative Leonard Boswell introduced legislation to amend the constitution. President Barack Obama and Senator John Kerry also called for an amendment to overrule the decision. In 2011 Senator Bernie Sanders proposed the Saving American Democracy Amendment, which would reverse the court's ruling. In 2015 Sanders said that "the foundations of American Democracy are being undermined" and called for sweeping campaign finance reform. Sanders has repeated such calls in

8211-819: The decision. In June the DISCLOSE Act passed in the House of Representatives but failed in the Senate. It would have required additional disclosure by corporations of their campaign expenditures. The law, if passed, would also have prohibited political spending by American companies with twenty percent or more foreign ownership, and by most government contractors. Also in 2010, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) proposed that laws on corporate governance be amended to assure that shareholders vote on political expenditures. Representative Donna Edwards and Maryland Democratic State Senator Jamie Raskin , have circulated petitions to reverse

8330-508: The developer and tribe 120 days to propose an alternate use for the former Navy site. 2014 saw the continuing strength of the Richmond Progressive Alliance 's candidates winning a majority of the council for its third straight election. In 2018, the city finally resolved the matter of the former Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot , approving mostly housing and some businesses on 30% of the land and open space/parks on

8449-544: The direction of restoring the First Amendment rights". By contrast, then-President Barack Obama stated that the decision "gives the special interests and their lobbyists even more power in Washington". Citizens United had previously used the 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act , commonly known as the McCain–Feingold Act or BCRA, which prohibited "electioneering communications" by incorporated entities. During

8568-427: The door open for carefully-tailored future regulation. Stevens further argued that the majority opinion contradicted the reasoning of other campaign finance precedents including Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce and McConnell v. FEC . On the matter of undue corporate influence on elections and spending on behalf of chosen candidates, Stevens cited First National Bank of Boston v. Bellotti and argued that

8687-466: The election and avoiding a run-off. In the city council election, RPA took all 3 open seats, with McLaughlin, Martinez, and Beckles beating out Chevon-backed candidates Donna Powers, Charles Ramsey, and Al Martinez. In 2016, RPA won 2 additional city council seats, giving them 5 of 6 city council seats and 5 of 7 voting seats in the Richmond government. Richmond voters approved a controversial rent-control and just-cause eviction measure written and backed by

8806-532: The film from being broadcast, and Citizens United challenged this determination in court. In December 2007, Citizens United filed a complaint in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging the constitutionality of several statutory provisions governing "electioneering communications". It asked the court to declare that the prohibition on corporate and union funding were facially unconstitutional , and also as applied to Hillary: The Movie and to

8925-475: The film. The justices voted the same as they had in Federal Election Commission v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc. , a similar 2007 case. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote the initial opinion of the court, holding that BCRA allowed the showing of the film. A draft concurring opinion by Justice Anthony Kennedy argued that the court should have gone much further. The other justices in the majority agreed with Kennedy's reasoning, and convinced Roberts to reassign

9044-700: The former Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot . Mindell Lewis Penn was a city council member in the city of Richmond, California between 1999 and 2005. is a graduate of the UC Davis Financial School of Management, and is affiliated with the "powerful" Bay Area group Black Women Organized For Political Action. </ref> She served on the Rosie the Riveter/World War II Home Front National Historical Park project committee. Mindell Penn

9163-483: The foundation of our democracy". Justice Antonin Scalia also wrote a concurring opinion that addressed the dissent by Justice John Paul Stevens , specifically with regard to the original understanding of the First Amendment. Scalia wrote that Stevens's dissent was "in splendid isolation from the text of the First Amendment... It never shows why 'the freedom of speech' that was the right of Englishmen did not include

9282-551: The freedom to speak in association with other individuals, including association in the corporate form." He further considered the dissent's exploration of the Framers ' views about the "role of corporations in society" to be misleading, and even if valid, irrelevant to the text of the Constitution. Scalia argued that the First Amendment was written in "terms of speech, not speakers" and that "Its text offers no foothold for excluding any category of speaker." This interpretation supported

9401-473: The funders of such speech, were valid as applied to the movie advertisements and to the movie itself. The majority ruled for the disclosure of the sources of campaign contributions, saying that: ...prompt disclosure of expenditures can provide shareholders and citizens with the information needed to hold corporations and elected officials accountable for their positions and supporters. Shareholders can determine whether their corporation's political speech advances

9520-475: The government could ban the digital distribution of political books over the Amazon Kindle or prevent a union from hiring an author to write a political book. Justice Kennedy later explained how "all of us are concerned with money in politics". However, he was shocked that "the government of the United States ... argued before the Supreme Court ... that if there was an upcoming political campaign ... and

9639-496: The government should be able to place limits on corporate or union donations. Separate polls commissioned by various conservative organizations, including Citizens United and the Institute for Free Speech , using different wording, found support for the decision. In particular, a Center for Competitive Politics poll found that 51% of respondents believed that Citizens United should have a right to air ads promoting Hillary: The Movie . The poll also found that only 22% had heard of

9758-565: The high court had "never suggested that such quid pro quo debts must take the form of outright vote buying or bribes". Again citing McConnell v. FEC , he argued that independent expenditures were sometimes a factor in gaining political access and concluded that large independent expenditures generate more influence than direct campaign contributions. Furthermore, Stevens argued that corporations could threaten politicians with negative advertising to gain unprecedented leverage, citing Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co. Hence, Stevens argued that

9877-419: The idea of more but smaller operations decentralizing the activity in the city. Also in 2010, the council ponied up 1.5 million US dollars to keep John F. Kennedy High School and two elementary schools from being closed due to lack of funding. This was supported by Myrna López In 2011, the council voted in its majority with Nat Bates and Jim Rogers dissenting to cancel the Point Molate casino project and give

9996-486: The largest city in the United States to have a Green mayor. In 2008, RPA supported ballot measure Measure T which would substantially increased business license fees for large corporations like Chevron, owner of the Chevron Richmond Refinery . RPA opposed, Measure U, which would enable casino building, like the one proposed for the former Point Molate Naval Fuel Depot , was successfully defeated at

10115-472: The litigation had presented. According to Toobin, Roberts agreed to withdraw the opinion and schedule the case for re-argument. When he did, the questions presented to the parties were, however, more expansive, touching on the issues Kennedy's opinion had identified. The court issued an order directing the parties to re-argue the case on September 9, 2009 with a discussion of whether it might be necessary to overrule Austin and/or McConnell v. FEC to decide

10234-458: The majority did not place enough emphasis on the need to prevent the appearance of corruption in elections. Earlier cases, including Buckley, recognized the importance of public confidence in democracy. Stevens cited recent data indicating that 80% of the public viewed corporate independent expenditures as a method to gain unfair legislative influence. With corporations able to spend far more to influence elections than any ordinary citizen, Stevens

10353-471: The majority opinion in McConnell v. FEC twelve years later, criticized the decision only obliquely, but warned, "In invalidating some of the existing checks on campaign spending, the majority in Citizens United has signaled that the problem of campaign contributions in judicial elections might get considerably worse and quite soon." Constitutional law scholar Laurence H. Tribe wrote that "talking about

10472-524: The majority's contention that the Constitution does not allow the courts to separate corporations into media and non-media categories. Justice Clarence Thomas , another member of the majority, also wrote a separate concurring opinion in which he disagreed with upholding the disclosure provisions of BCRA Sections 201 and 311. To protect the anonymity of contributors to organizations exercising free speech, Thomas would have struck down those reporting requirements, rather than allowing them to be challenged only on

10591-600: The majority, Stevens read part of his 90-page dissent from the bench. Stevens concurred in the court's decision to sustain BCRA's disclosure provisions but dissented from the principal holding. He argued that the majority ruling "threatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions across the Nation. The path it has taken to reach its outcome will, I fear, do damage to this institution." He added: "A democracy cannot function effectively when its constituent members believe laws are being bought and sold." Stevens also argued that

10710-399: The majority. He explained: "The [government's] ... theory, if accepted, would empower the Government to prohibit newspapers from running editorials or opinion pieces supporting or opposing candidates for office, so long as the newspapers were owned by corporations—as the major ones are. First Amendment rights could be confined to individuals, subverting the vibrant public discourse that is at

10829-418: The month and, if necessary, hold special meetings on the remaining Tuesdays. Presently the entire city council is Democratic. After Gayle McLaughlin's victory in 2006, the council appointed Harpreet Sandhu who had been the city's Human Relations Director to her vacant city council person seat. The fact that public input was not considered and that the candidates were not revealed to the public outraged many in

10948-524: The nation in a vital particular the power of self protection". After recognizing that in Buckley v. Valeo the court had struck down portions of a broad prohibition of independent expenditures from any sources, Stevens argued that nevertheless Buckley recognized the legitimacy of "prophylactic" measures for limiting campaign spending and found the prevention of corruption to be a reasonable goal for legislation. Consequently, Stevens argued that Buckley left

11067-476: The original oral argument , Deputy Solicitor General Malcolm L. Stewart (representing the FEC) argued that under Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce in 1990, the government would have the power to ban books if those books contained even one sentence expressly advocating the election or defeat of a candidate and were published or distributed by a corporation or labor union. Stewart further argued that under Austin

11186-457: The prerogative of the mayor. The table below shows the number of RPA elected officials after the November election: RPA has fielded electoral candidates for local and state offices. RPA candidates usually run in nonpartisan elections or as No Party Preference (NPP) independent candidates. Richmond City Council (California) The Richmond City Council is the governing body for

11305-432: The preservation of the wild turkeys of Point Richmond , and also in the North & East neighborhood . Rosemary Corbin is a longstanding Democratic public figure and former mayor of Richmond, California . Corbin served on the Richmond City Council from 1985 to 1993, and then as the mayor from 1993 to 2001. In 1993, Corbin defeated incumbent Richmond Mayor George Livingston , who was seeking re-election. In 1998

11424-497: The prohibition of all independent expenditures by corporations and unions in the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act violated the First Amendment. The ruling barred restrictions on corporations, unions, and nonprofit organizations from independent expenditures, allowing groups to independently support political candidates with financial resources. In a dissenting opinion, Justice John Paul Stevens argued that

11543-521: The public interest". Just days after the ruling, Obama condemned the decision during his 2010 State of the Union Address , stating that, "Last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests—including foreign corporations—to spend without limit in our elections. Well, I don't think American elections should be bankrolled by America's most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities." On television,

11662-480: The remaining 70% after years of litigation regarding a proposed Las Vegas-style casino proposed by the Guideville Band of Pomo Indians . In the 2018 elections, the Richmond Progressive Alliance whose candidates form the left wing position on the council lost their supermajority. The other half of the council is typically made up of Richmond Chevron Refinery backed candidates, also Democrats, but more to

11781-600: The remaining fellowship of McGlaughlin, Butt, Ritterman, and sometimes Rogers. In 2015, Thomas K. Butt was elected mayor. The vice mayor is Ben Choi. They serve alongside councilmen Nathanial Bates , Eduardo Martinez, Demnlus Johnson, Jael Myrick, and Melvin Willis In 2010, the council passed an ordinance approving of unlimited cannabis dispensaries. This was supported by Nat Bates, Gayle McGlaughlin, Jim Rogers, and Jeff Ritterman, while opposed by Myrna López, María Viramontes, and Tom Butt. The majority stated that they liked

11900-448: The right. The reasons cited were Gayle McLaughlin and Jovanka Beckles running for statewide office and Ada Recinos falling to sixth place in the election. In 2019 the city council was mulling a ban on coal and petroleum coke storage that is frequently stored in boxcars along the industrial city's myriad train tracks off-gassing potential contaminants to the city's urban population possibly contributing to respiratory illnesses. In 2019,

12019-410: The rise and fall of pro-Chevron and anti-Chevron camps on the city council and the formation of the Richmond Progressive Alliance co-founded by Andres Soto . It was also the time during which Richmond was transformed from city with high gun violence and homicides to one with renewable energy and new schools built by a progressive Green Party mayor - Gayle McLaughlin who replaced Irma Anderson . For

12138-470: The role of corporate money in federal elections since Teddy Roosevelt was president." Representative Alan Grayson stated that it was "the worst Supreme Court decision since the Dred Scott case , and that the court had opened the door to political bribery and corruption in elections to come. Senator John McCain , a co-crafter of the BCRA, said "there's going to be, over time, a backlash... when you see

12257-666: The ruling, saying that "With this decision, corporations can now directly pour vast amounts of corporate money, through independent expenditures, into the electoral swamp already flooded with corporate campaign PAC contribution dollars." When discussing the ruling and related developments, former President Jimmy Carter called the United States "an oligarchy with unlimited political bribery" in an interview with Thom Hartmann . Retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor , whose opinions had changed from dissenting in Austin v. Michigan State Chamber of Commerce to co-authoring (with Stevens)

12376-461: The ruling, with the pollsters interpreting the results as: "corporations and unions can spend as much money as they want to help political candidates win elections". Additionally, 72% supported "an effort by Congress to reinstate limits on corporate and union spending on election campaigns". The poll showed large majority support from Democrats, Republicans, and independents. A Gallup Poll conducted in 2009, after oral arguments but publicized after

12495-510: The same year, RPA member Jovanka Beckles and former Obama 2008 campaign coordinator Buffy Wicks competed for the California Assembly District 15 seat. Richmond mayor Tom Butt and the California Progressive Alliance endorsed Wicks. Wicks went on to beat Beckles by 12 points and win the seat. In 2019, Butt blamed the Richmond Progressive Alliance for obstructing appointments to city positions, which are done typically at

12614-402: The stage for Speechnow.org v. FEC (2010), which authorized the creation of Super PACs , and McCutcheon v. FEC (2014), which struck down other campaign finance restrictions. The ruling also influenced the outcome of Arizona Free Enterprise Club's Freedom Club PAC v. Bennett (2011) in which the Supreme Court outlawed public funding by states for candidates who were unable to compete with

12733-587: The state assembly. On the local level, Washington, D.C., and 400 other municipalities passed resolutions requesting a federal constitutional amendment. Critics predicted that the Citizens United ruling would "bring about a new era of corporate influence in politics", allowing companies to "buy elections" to promote their financial interests. Instead, large expenditures, usually through "Super PACS", have come from "a small group of billionaires", based largely on ideology. The New York Times asked seven academics to opine on how corporate money would reshape politics as

12852-494: The statute on behalf of various supporters. Legal scholar Erwin Chemerinsky called it "one of the most important First Amendment cases in years". On January 21, 2010, the court issued a 5–4 decision in favor of Citizens United that struck down the BCRA restrictions on independent political expenditures by corporations as violations of the First Amendment, in a reversal of the District Court opinion. The majority opinion

12971-479: The total spending under that category was just $ 750 million. Outside spending surpassed candidate spending in 126 races since the ruling compared to only 15 in the five election cycles prior. Groups that did not disclose their donors spent $ 963 million in the decade following the ruling, compared to $ 129 million in the decade prior. Non-partisan outside spending as a percentage of total election spending increased from 6% in 2008 to nearly 20% in 2018. During

13090-627: The writing and allow Kennedy's concurrence to become the majority opinion. On the minority side, Justice John Paul Stevens assigned the dissenting opinion to David Souter , with Souter completing the task shortly before retiring from the court. The final draft of the dissent went beyond critiquing the majority. Toobin described it as airing "some of the Court's dirty laundry", as Souter accused Roberts of having manipulated court procedures to reach his desired result—an expansive decision that changed decades of election law and ruled on issues neither party to

13209-431: The years since. The New York Times reported that 24 states with laws prohibiting or limiting independent expenditures by unions and corporations would have to change their campaign finance laws because of the ruling. After Citizens United , numerous state legislatures raised their limits on contributions to candidates and parties. Members of 16 state legislatures have called for a constitutional amendment to reverse

13328-574: Was an American lawyer who was an important civic figure in Contra Costa County, California and the city of Richmond . He was the first black lawyer in Richmond , California. In 1961 Carroll became the first African American elected to the city council (1961–1964) and later became the first black mayor of Richmond (1964–65) or any large American city. Afterwards George Carroll became the first black judge in Contra Costa when he

13447-575: Was appointed to the Bay Municipal Court by Governor Pat Brown in 1965. Nathaniel Bates is a former mayor and seven-term city councilmember of Richmond, California . Bates was a city councilmember from 1967 to 1983 and again from 1995 to the present. He was chosen as mayor for 1971–72 (during which time he was the first African-American to chair the Contra Costa Mayors Conference) and again for 1976–77. He

13566-452: Was concerned that the majority opinion would cause the citizenry to "lose faith in our democracy". Legal entities like corporations, Stevens wrote, are not "We the People" for whom our Constitution was established. Therefore, he argued, they should not be given speech protections under the First Amendment, which protects individual self-expression and self-realization. Corporate spending is

13685-607: Was narrowly elected Superintendent of Public Instruction in 2018 over his opponent, Marshall Tuck . He was the endorsed candidate of the California Democratic Party and all five 2018 California Teachers of the Year. A Democrat , he went on to represent the 15th Assembly District from 2014 to 2018. Maria Theresa Viramontes is an activist and former city councilwoman for Richmond, California 's city council between 2001 and 2010. In 2003 she voted against

13804-484: Was succeeded by Tony K. Thurmond , who was appointed upon her resignation. John Márquez is an American Democratic politician and activist who has held various positions in Richmond, California city government over a span twenty-three years in addition to further years of service before and after in the West County Area . This includes eighteen years as a city councilman and a stint as vice mayor. He

13923-455: Was the first Latino to serve on the Richmond City Council. Originally he was an appointee to the council in 1985 and won an election to that seat in 1987, he subsequently lost his second bid in 1991. However he was elected again in 1993 and twice more in 1997 and 2004. In 1990 and 1998 he also served as vice mayor . Márquez was defeated for re-election in 2008, and also lost a mayoral bid in 2001 to Green Gayle McLaughlin . Jeff Ritterman

14042-409: Was the third African-American mayor of Richmond after George B. Carroll. His seven terms on the city council are unprecedented in the city of Richmond, and his 32 years of service make him one of the longest-serving city councilmembers in the state. He is a Democrat . Citizens United v. FEC Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission , 558 U.S. 310 (2010), is a landmark decision of

14161-505: Was written by the moderate Justice Anthony Kennedy , who chose to align with the more conservative justices. The court held that BCRA Section 203's prohibition of all independent political expenditures by corporations and unions violated the First Amendment's protection of free speech. As Kennedy wrote, "If the First Amendment has any force, it prohibits Congress from fining or jailing citizens, or associations of citizens, for simply engaging in political speech." Kennedy also noted that because

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