Tag Archives: Elections

ELECTION 2012: Is Romney Getting Buried in “A Devastating Opinion Storm” Generated by YouTube Views of New Media?

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Hugh Hewitt, a lawyer, blogger, political pundit and commentator is not convinced by polls showing that President Barack Obama is leading Governor Mitt Romney. In his popular Blog, Hewitt slammed the polls, and then exclaimed:

So with 40 days to go until the decision is in, that’s the playing field: A tied race, with enthusiasm on the GOP side but grim self-interest propping up a disconnected president while the world burns, the domestic economy crumbles, and elite media and select pollsters cheer the emperor they love and on whom they depend for treats.

Interesting. Frightening, but interesting.

LINK:
http://www.hughhewitt.com/blog/g/bbda2e0c-ca90-43f2-8473-5458a8af7d69

But, in his best-selling book: BLOG-Understanding the Information Reformation That’s Changing Your Word, AMAZON.COM LINK: 
http://www.amazon.com/Blog-Understanding-Information-Reformation-Changing/dp/078521187X
 , in which he writes extensively about new media and the impact of blogging on the coverage of politics by mainstream media, Hewitt expresses a salient and powerful notion: “the impact of a devastating opinion storm generated by a blog swarm,” and how the generation of that opinion storm in new media can push or even trump mainstream political media coverage.

Can the aggregation of YouTube views have the same force as a blog swarm? In other words, are there certain trends in those views which can generate “a devastating opinion storm?”

The recently compilation of the YouTube viewing data of the  videonclips from the Presidential campaigns certainly suggest the possibility.

Charlie Warzel, adweek.com, writes as follows:

The 2012 conventions have been arguably the most important political moment thus far in the campaign and according to a study from the Pew center for excellence in journalism, Democrats enjoyed a hearty advantage in terms of exposure on platforms like YouTube. The results, which tracked total numbers of YouTube views from date of publish until September 24th, illustrate that Clint Eastwood’s empty chair performance well-overshadowed Mitt Romney’s big moment last August, pulling in 3.2 million views to Romney’s 1.05 million.

xx xx xx

[W]hat the numbers do help illustrate, however, is that the Romney camp has had serious difficulties capitalizing on a crucial moment of visibility for the candidate. YouTube may be one element of the vote, but as the views were compiled over a month, it is indicative of the limited exposure that Romney is generating online. In a time where the Republican nominee needs to familiarize as many voters with his ‘brand’ as he can, he seems to be falling short, digitally at least.

SOURCE: LINK: Read More: Click:
http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/clint-rocks-mitt-democrats-dominate-youtube-convention-wars-144068

 

The Pew Research Center provided the following data:

The higher interest in Obama and the Democrats in social media is also reflected in the viewership of videos since the two conventions. For instance, through September 21, 2012, Obama’s acceptance speech on various YouTube channels has been viewed nearly five times as often as Romney’s (4.9 million to 1.1 million). And contrary to what some observers might speculate, Obama’s speech has also been viewed more than former President Bill Clinton’s address to the nation, though that speech, in various forms, has been viewed on YouTube nearly four times as often as Romney (3.9 million times to Romney’s 1.1 million). The same pattern can be seen in the numbers as they relate to the wives of the candidates. Michelle Obama’s speech has been viewed 3.2 million times, about five times as often as the one delivered by Ann Romney (563,000).

Pew Research Chart

SOURCE: LINK: Read More: Click:
http://www.journalism.org/commentary_backgrounder/how_social_and_traditional_media_differ_their_treatment_conventions_and_beyo

WHAT DO YOU THINK?

COULD THIS NEW MEDIA DATA GENERATE “A DEVASTATING OPINION STORM” THAT WILL BURY ROMNEY? 

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ROMNEY: Would an African American female running mate push Mitt Romney’s candidacy over the top?

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Republican Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney ...

Republican Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney and his wife, Ann Romney (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

COMMENTARY

Could Mitt Romney win the “race to the top” if he names an African American female to his ticket as vice president?

Jessika Morgan, in “Black Female GOP Possibilities May Exist for Romney Running Mate,” wrote the following:

Women are being considered as possible candidates to run with Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on the November ballot, the GOP candidate’s wife said July 5.

“We’ve been looking at that,” Ann Romney told CBS News in an interview. “There’s a lot of people Mitt is considering right now.”

She declined to say more about the list of possible vice president candidates to be paired with the Republican Party’s presumptive nominee, other than to note that, as the former Massachusetts governor’s wife, she has offered advice in the selection process and would “love that option” of a female running mate.

Among the Black Republican women who could be added to a list of women running mate possibilities are former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll.

Rice, the subject of speculation in June, rejected the idea. And while Carroll, a Navy veteran and the first woman elected to statewide office in Florida has been silent, political journalists see Carroll as a possible aid to a Romney candidacy.

SOURCE: AFRO AMERICAN NEWSPAPER LINK:
http://www.afro.com/sections/news/afro_briefs/story.htm?storyid=75525

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Could an African American running mate aid Romney’s candidacy?

What do you think?

Your comments are welcomed.

MORGAN FREEMAN: Obama is not the first black president?; well, you were not the first black actor to play president yourself!

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COMMENTARY

Maybe Morgan Freeman was pandering for media attention and Internet clicks with his comment that President Barack Obama is not really America’s first African American or black President. According to Freeman, President Obama is America’s first mixed-race President. SOURCE: YAHOO’S MOVIES LINK:
http://movies.yahoo.com/news/morgan-freeman-obama-not-americas-first-black-president-152604131.html

Freeman, of course, who is presumably African American himself, portrayed a president in “Deep Impact” the 1998 film release of Paramount and Dream Works. SOURCE: IMDb LINK:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120647/

The film was very profitable. It grossed $180 Million on a production budget of $75 Million. So everybody including Freeman made some pocket change from his fictitious portrayal of the President.

And, presumably, this is what Freeman and his handlers were seeking by having him take a swipe at President Obama. Afterall, every click counts!

Thankfully, Freeman was not the first African American actor to portray the President. That credit goes to Sammy Davis, Jr. in the 1933 release of  “Rufus Jones for President.” SOURCE: WIKI LINK:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_president_in_popular_culture_(United_States
) A number of other actors also preceded Freeman in the role.

So Mr. Freeman, while your sop about President Obama borders on nonsense, at least it made us do some work and dig up some pop culture and history.

75 years after

Cover of "Deep Impact (Special Collector'...

Cover via Amazon

a black president emanated from the mind of a creative film writer, fiction became reality. America did indeed elect its first black president.

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2012: AZ Governor Brewer endorses Romney

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Congressman Poe and Governor Mitt Romney

Image via Wikipedia

Today [02-26-12] Arizona Governor Jan Brewer endorsed Mitt Romney for president during her appearance on Meet The Press.

That should help.

If Mitt takes the Arizona and Michigan primary elections, he’s got the nomination.

If Mitt gets the GOP nomination, he stands a good chance of winning the general election.

SOURCE: Video Clip, see Sidebar.

Around the Web

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POLITICAL MEDIA: Calling the definitive political balls and strikes and influencing the public’s opinion in this emerging and developing era of new media

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The Lead

Our conversation centers on the realities and dynamics of news, coverage and commentary in politics, and the influence of political media on the public’s opinion in this era of new media.

Quote

This article was inspired by a piece on Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry, the newly minted weekend host on MSNBC, and her clear frustration with how the media covers politics.

During her Sunday show, Harris-Perry discussed what she called “a dirty little secret” that those who cover “horse-race politics” like to keep under wraps. “We are suffering from premature speculation,” Harris-Perry said.

The 2012 Republican primary race has taken many sharp twists and turns. Harris-Perry showed headlines from leading news organizations that reflected the Republican primary’s constant change of course. Headlines read “Herman Cain, Frontrunner,” to “Another Poll Confirms Trump As Republican Frontrunner,” to “Ingraham: Perry Should Drop Out.”

“Headlines like these…expose the media for its secret wish to skip the foreplay and get right to the main event,” Harris-Perry said. “And it’s all left me very frustrated.”

SOURCE: Melissa Harris-Perry: The Media Suffers From ‘Premature Speculation’ (VIDEO) HUFFINGTON POST

Our Take

Mainstream media is doing its job as best it can in this new area of media the dynamics of which are changing nearly every news cycle of the week because of the impact of digital technology, blogging and the 24 hour news cycle.

There was a time when the media took the lead in shaping policy and influencing the public’s opinion. Thus, for example, when some of the giants of the media such as David Brinkley or Mike Wallace or Tom Brokaw aired a story and articulated a viewpoint, that view had some shelf life. It influenced the coverage of political news for several weeks, and over time influenced opinions, policy decisions and outcomes in political contests.

But, the good old days of political media and its influence in shaping public opinion are gone.

Today, a Dr. Melissa Harris-Perry can air a scholarly commentary on an important issue of public policy or a significant development in politics, and within minutes it can be shredded, and then lost forever in the court of public opinion. An attack can be mounted in minutes by bloggers; disseminated worldwide on the Internet within a few more minutes, and by the time of the talk shows on radio, TV and the Internet within hours on the same morning, afternoon and evening of the news cycle, be distorted and discredited.

So, Dr. Harris-Perry, we understand your frustration. But, the playing field and dynamics of political media have changed dramatically.

To be credible, informative and sustainable in today’s environment as a political analyst and commentator, you and others in the media will have to call the balls and strikes well before you step up to the plate, and well before you would have done so before the evolution of digital technology.

“And, that’s the way it is.”

IOWA: winner, losers

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LEAD (Revised)

This is MJB’s call of the winner, there only can be one, and losers, the also rans, in the Iowa Primary for Tuesday, January 3, 2012:

1. Newt Gingrich

2. Rick Santorum

3. Herman Cain

4. Rick Perry

5. John Huntsman

6. Mitt Romney

7. Michelle Bachmann

8. Ron Paul

Comment

What do you think?

Do you think it’s between Romney and Paul as the polls and commentators have suggested?

Hint: the polls and the commentators could be wrong!

Will the outcomes in Iowa set the stage for the wins and losses in upcoming primaries?

CAIN: ain’t no more Herman Cain for political media to beat on

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Lead

Herman Cain has suspended his campaign.

By devoting extensive coverage seeking to humiliate Cain and to derail his candidacy, mainstream political media lost its way. It utterly failed  its fundamental role in American presidential politics to stay focused, and to adequately inform the American people about the issues of national concern on the business and affairs of the country, the presidency, and the Presidential candidates in the GOP race for the Republican nomination.

Media (Quote):

After Herman Cain suspended his presidential campaign, other Republican presidential hopefuls praised him for energizing conservative voters and wished him well.

Source:  Danny Yadron, “Former Rivals Praise Herman Cain,” WSJ WASHINGTON WIRE BLOG

Query

Please take a moment and reflect.

If you wish to comment, that would be appreciated. But if not, please just take a moment and think.

Set aside the fact that Herman Cain is a Republican, that he is black and that he is conservative. Just reflect that up to now, he was a candidate in America for the GOP nomination to run for President in Election 2012.

Whether you agreed or disagreed with his philosophy, viewpoints and politics; whether you would have voted for him or not; Herman had every right as an American citizen to enter upon the playing field; to compete in the game of Presidential politics with Mitt, Rick, Newt, Jon, Michelle and Ron and whoever else seeking to run for President; and, to engage in conversations about the business and affairs of the nation.

This is still the United States of America.

Every qualified man and woman still has an unfettered right under the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, to enter the race; to say whatever he or she wants to say; and, to do of course within reason whatever he or she wants to do to run for office; get his or her message out to the voters and seek the wins needed in the upcoming primary elections for GOP candidates who want to secure the nomination of the Republican Party, and run against Barack Obama in Election 2012 for President of the United States of America.

Whether Herman had $10 in the bank, or $10 Million, that was his fundamental right. And, it was taken from him.

How?

Not by the well-informed decision-making of voters at the ballot box.

But, essentially by the personal decisions of reporters, analysts, commentators, contributors, writers, editors and others in political media hot to trot about generating a torrent of media coverage concerning sex stories from three unhappy and unimportant women in the business and affairs of the nation anxious to tell their alleged stories from years gone by, but could never adequately explain why they wanted to tell their stories in the first place.

Who really cares, and in reality what difference should it have made to the state of the union and the presidency, what happened 14 years ago to the former National Restaurant Association staff employee who settled her claim, got paid, got another job, made another sexual harassment complaint and at least until one month ago was moving on with her life and career?

Who really cares, and in reality what difference should it have made to the state of the union and the presidency, what happened to the former applicant for a job at the NRA who did nothing and said nothing for all these years about an alleged sexual assault which took place 13 years ago?

Who really cares, and in reality what difference should it have made to the state of the union and the presidency, what allegedly has happening for 13 years  with a consenting women who allegedly was involved a love affair?

Mainstream political media should have been disciplined and stayed focused on the issues affecting the state of the union by keeping Americans informed about those issues and the positions of the GOP candidates on those issues. Just about every media outlet in the nation, however, got off mission,  went rogue, and wasted tons of ink and air time on what amounted to tabloid trivia.

It was mainstream political media coverage in prime time, to use the words of Ron Paul from another context: “beneath the office of the presidency.”

That’s our take, what’s yours?

CONGRESS: constitutional amendment introduced to overturn Supreme Court decision allowing unlimited corporate spending on politics

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Lead In

The Supreme Court ruled last year that corporations are persons, for the purpose of the First Amendment, which have a free speech constitutional right to tap corporate treasuries and spend unlimited corporate funds on politics. A constitutional amendment has been introduced in the House to overturn the decision.

The current United States Supreme Court, the h...

Image via Wikipedia

Justices of the Supreme Court

The Amendment raises several important policy questions: (a) whether corporations will voluntarily limit their political spending in the 2012 Elections until the fate of the Amendment is resolved by Congress; and, (b) whether the candidates for President will voluntarily impose contribution limits on corporate contributions to their campaigns?

The political question is whether introduction of the Amendment is, as stated in the article, “one of the greatest signs yet that the 99 Percenters are having an impact” on national policy.

Media Quote

*  *  *Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), a member of the House Judiciary Committee, today introduced an amendment that would ban corporate money in politics and end corporate personhood once and for all.

Deutch’s amendment, called the Outlawing Corporate Cash Undermining the Public Interest in our Elections and Democracy (OCCUPIED) Amendment, would overturn the Citizens United decision, re-establishing the right of Congress and the states to regulate campaign finance laws, and to effectively outlaw the ability of for-profit corporations to contribute to campaign spending.

Source: Read THINK PROGRESS

Background

The decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission is unprecedented in American jurisprudence and national politics.It  could unleash unlimited corporate expenditures of treasury funds into the political process without any comments by shareholders. That could result in billions of dollars of heretofore untapped and unavailable corporate cash pouring into elections.

One view is that the full impact of the decision, authorizing an unprecedented and historic expansion of corporate political advocacy directed at policy decisions, and to the election or defeat of candidates for political office, could be devastating.

Another view, as articulated by Dr. Stephen R. Weissman, a former associate director for policy at the Campaign Finance Institute, is that the “decision is unlikely to change the political situation on the ground very much.” Read Los Angeles Times, Opinion (January 28, 2010).

MJB’s Take

The decision in Citizens United could usher into the mix new era campaign  technologies, communications strategies and fierce rapid responses by savvy politicians to hits from corporate sponsored political ads on a range of policy issues some of which may not directly concern the business operations of corporations.

Corporations will raise their profiles, advocate and engage in politics by hitting politicians for their  positions on policy issues. Politicians in turn will intuitively respond and hit back.

Increased corporate spending for political advertising will generate significant mainstream political media coverage of the controversies. The coverage in one sense may heighten the public’s interest; but, in another sense, the coverage will diminish the quality of the information disseminated to the public by the media which generally should empower them to take part more effectively in the political process by acting on what, but for the portal to portal coverage of controversies, otherwise would be unbiased and quality information.

Of course, the clear rebuttal to that argument is that heightened public interest is a good thing because it expands the base of stakeholders in the game on the political playing field. Hence, the political take from the Occupy Wall Street movement which is apparently grafted into the title of the proposed Amendement.

In addition, it can be argued that the more intense the controversies, the policy debates, the attacks on politicians and the  media coverage, the better for the political process in general.  Savvy politicians and candidates for political office can take advantage of the new-found field of political play, expensed for the most part by corporate political money, and prosper.

The clearest example to illustrate the point is the low-budget but effective campaign by Herman Cain. Cain was able to use low-budget campaign tools, campaign strategies and the Internet to fight back against a barrage of mainstream media coverage, which for the most part was negative; take part in the debates on policy issues; and, position himself as a contender to be taken seriously for the GOP nomination.

Certainly, there will be  legitimate concerns expressed about the possible corrosive influence of corporate political money on policy making and the outcomes of elections. But, good politicians should be ready to hit back if they are attacked just as Herman Cain has been able to do by employing new media tools and strategies.

Related Coverage & Web Articles

Corporations may not necessarily be anxious to begin spending corporate treasury funds on politics because of the uncertainty whether the Amendment will be passed and adopted by the States paticularly if the spending decisions lack shareholder approval. Shareholders are bound to sue executives should such spending decisions be made.

Candidates may need to consider voluntarily imposing limits on corporate contributions to their campaigns. Although the expenditures in question technically are independent expenditures made without input of campaigns, the court of public opinion is bound to connect them. So it may be better for candidates to get in front of the issue and potential controversy by initiating voluntary measures.

Among other things, the movement of the 99 Percenters could have influenced the decision of the Representative to introduce the Amendment

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End Notes

Thank you for visiting the site, and reading the content.

Please feel free to ask questions, make comments, or reply to any of the questions or comments posted.

Generally, we will respond to all questions and comments.

Is Georgia Politics, Religion, Gay Bashing Or The Eddie Long Mess On Our Mind?

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The Bishop Eddie Long alleged sex scandal is now on an incredible news media roll that could run into the November midterm elections and even beyond. But, is Long’s high-profile mess really about his alleged illicit sex, relations with gays or gay bashing; the power and influence of black churches, mega churches, television ministries or black ministers in general; or, the rough and tumble of Georgia based politics and political campaigns?

For bloggers, public affairs, politics and media junkies, it’s interesting and engaging what’s going on in Georgia these days.

The Democratic candidate for Governor, Roy Barnes, who cancelled an upcoming political campaign fundraiser to be hosted by Bishop Long, is in a tough election contest with a Tea Party supported opponent. And, Newt Gingrich, the former Georgia Congressman, U. S. House Speaker and leader of the conservative Contract With America movement that influenced mid-term House elections in 1994 under President Clinton, is making rumblings about launching a candidacy for the upcoming Presidential Election. With all that going on, there is renewed national debate about the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy affecting gays in the military, on the heals of a court decision declaring the policy to be unconstitutional, while Reverend Long takes a hit about his gay bashing.

WOW!!! What a mess, what a scandal and what a blast for politics, current and future Georgia based political campaigns, religion, gays, television ministries and black ministers all rolled into one!

Perhaps it’s all a coincidence; perhaps not. It will be interesting to see who gets paid out of all this at the end of the day.

But, one thing is for certain.

Georgia will certainly be on our mind for a while.

White House Counsel Bauer May Reign In Corporate Political Money Adverse To The President

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Robert Bauer, a Washington, D. C. political power lawyer who recently became White House Counsel, is likely to emerge as the most important in-house counselor to President Barack Obama and his reelection campaign committee as they begin to gird themselves against what could be a torrent of negative advertising openly attacking the President’s leadership, sharply criticizing his policies and aggressively advocating his defeat.

That spate of advertising probably will be fueled by gushers of political money, in the hundreds of millions or even billions of dollars, which corporations are now free to spend seeking to influence the outcome of the 2011 Presidential Election. The prediction is fair in light of the recent decision of the SCOTUS in Citizens United v. FEC. The Supreme Court declared, in a 5-4 decision, that corporations have a free speech right protected by the First Amendment to tap their vast treasuries, without government interference or regulation, and spend unlimited sums of money on advocacy and advertising to defeat or support candidates in federal elections for political offices.

Bauer formerly chaired the political law practice group of Perkins Coie, a national law firm. He is an expert in campaign finance and the regulation of political money. In addition, he has authored several books and maintained a weblog on the subjects. He also has lectured and litigated on the subjects.

More important for the President, Bauer has been his personal lawyer. He represented President Obama in the litigation challenging the President’s nationality and qualifications to serve in office. There is no question about Bauer’s loyalty to the President, and his motivation to lawyer and advocate for the President with zeal.

So what’s the bottom line?

Corporations may spend their treasury money as they please to make independent expenditures playing politics. Having said that, there are still regulations in place limiting their political activities. Those regulations prohibit direct corporate contributions to political candidates; limit the amounts of contributions which can be made to political candidates through corporate political action committees; and, outlaw any political spending in federal elections by foreign corporations.

The law is clear with respect to corporations making independent expenditures. What’s not clear is whether corporations have a First Amendment free speech right to collaborate with political candidates on the expenditure of corporate political money to advocate or advertise the defeat of their opponents. As stated by Craig Engle, head of the Political Law Group at Arent Fox: “These expenditures must still be made independent of the candidate’s campaign.” Supreme Court Strikes Corporate Speech Prohibition in Campaign Finance Case (01-21-10) Link:  Arent Fox Article  That issue alone is likely to generate a slew of complaints, compliance investigations and enforcement suits.

Bauer’s task is clear.

He must give counsel and direct implementation of a broad strategy to monitor and review closely corporate political expenditures for advocacy and advertising adverse to the President. He and his staff must respond quickly and aggressively to any negative advocacy and advertising that damage the President. They also must take the necessary action to assure that the related expenditures comply with the regulations which have survived the Supreme Court decision.

Small Business Political Money & Free Speech-Will Their Political Activism Lead To Gushers Of Political Cash And Campaign Ads?

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After considering Ted Olsen’s comments in The Wall Street Journal about the impact of the SCOTUS decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, it is clear that the free speech rights of small business and their entrepreneurs were as much intended targets of the decision as those of major corporations. Olsen, the lawyer for Citizens United, said:

 The decisions that the Court today overruled rested on the faulty premise that political speech can be restricted in order to prevent corporate money from “distorting” political discourse. In fact, the vast majority of corporations are either nonprofit advocacy groups–like Citizens United–or small businesses. Far from “distorting” the political process, the speech of these corporations reflects the views of their members or the entrepreneurial individuals who formed the corporation. Permitting these individuals to have a voice in the political process adds an important perspective to the public debate and enables individuals of limited means to band together to counterbalance the political speech of the super-rich. McCain-Feingold silenced those speakers, and, as the Court concluded, was therefore impossible to reconcile with the First Amendment. 

That was a mouthful. Link:
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2010/01/21/free-speech-v-democracy-rounding-up-the-citizens-united-reactions/tab/article/

Apparently, Olsen envisions significant and substantially increased levels of activism in policy making and politics by thousands upon thousands of small businesses and entrepreneurs. Those are the legions of “S” Corps, LLC’s, LLP’s and their owners. For the most part, they have not been players in politics: they have not set up PACS; they do not have lobbyists; and, have not spent money on political ads.

But, they will have a lots of political money, heretofore untapped gushers of political cash in the millions of dollars, to spread around on the political playing field and deploy for all types of public affairs advocacy; to influence policy; and, to take sides and spend those millions on ads for political candidates they like or dislike influencing the outcomes of elections.

In that respect, whatever the original intent of the litigation was, the Citizens United decision has fostered a new, unchartered and possibly unlimited frontier for the deployment of political money and advertising dollars spent lavishly not only by major corporations, long term players in politics; but also, by small businesses and their owners, the new entrants.

 That conceivably will revolutionize, and perhaps even radicalize, politics, policy making and election outcomes well beyond the bounds as we now them!

Corporate Free Speech Decision May Usher In A New Era Of Political Rapid Responses & Heightened Public Interest To Corporate Activism

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The SCOTUS decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission could unleash nearly unlimited expenditures of corporate treasury funds in politics.

One view is that the full impact of the decision probably will not be limited to an unprecedented expansion of corporate political advocacy directed at policy and the election or defeat of candidates for political office.  Another view, as articulated by Dr. Stephen R. Weissman, a former associate director for policy at the Campaign Finance Institute, is that the “decision is unlikely to change the political situation on the ground very much.” Los Angeles Times, Opinion (January 28, 2010). Link:
http://articles.latimes.com/2010/jan/28/opinion/la-oe-weissman28-2010jan28

In any event, the decision in Citizens United is also likely to usher in a new era of political rapid responses by savvy politicians on a range of policy issues affecting corporations.

As corporations raise their profiles, advocate and engage in politics by hitting politicians for their  positions on policy issues, savvy politicians intuitively will respond and hit back. Increased spending for corporate speech and political advertising should generate significant media coverage. That spate of news articles, commentaries and editorials on corporate public affairs matters ostensibly will heighten the public’s interest.

Heightened public interest expands the political playing field. The more intense the debates, the attacks on politicians and the  media coverage, the better for the politics in general.  Savvy politicians and candidates for political office can take advantage of the new found political play, expensed for the most part by corporate political money, and prosper!

Certainly, there will be  legitimate concerns expressed about the possible corrosive influence of corporate political money on policy making and the outcomes of elections.

But, good politicians should be ready to hit back if they are attacked by corporations. 

And, shrewd candidates for political office should position themselves to take advantage of corporate political activism.

Public Official Liability v. Corporate Free Speech-Is Liability For Damages In Politics A Concern?

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The recent opinion filed by the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission certainly raises valid concerns about the influence that corporate dollars may have on campaign finance, campaign finance reform and political campaigns particularly this election year which will be dominated by federal midterm Congressional elections and state gubernatorial races. One commentator argues that the Supreme Court has “[told] corporate giants that they have a constitutional right to trample our democracy.” Robert Weissman, President, Public Citizen, “Citizens United v. FEC:Shed A Tear for Democracy,”  Huffington Post (February 1, 2010). LINK:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-weissman/shed-a-tear-for-democracy_b_432079.html

The Court ruled that under the First Amendment, there is such a thing as a corporate free speech right which allows corporations to freely spend their corporate treasury dollars speaking about and advocating the defeat or election of political candidates. No doubt, the campaign finance and campaign finance reform landscapes have been altered in a dramatic and radical fashion.

But, buried in that decision is a legal issue that could be more troubling than the legal decision about the scope and impact of corporate  free speech in policy making, public affairs, lobbying and politics. It’s whether elected officials and their appointees are now exposed to liability for damages because of actions they take or decisions they make which corporations may disagree with? In other words, will those actions and decisions now be subject not only to scrutiny but also to awards for damages in lawsuits under the First  Amendment?

Lest we forget. the Court long ago held that corporations are persons that have the same civil rights protections as people. Corporations have protected Due Process rights and Equal Protection rights along with the First Amendment rights discussed in the opinion.

So what’s to stop corporations from bringing  massive liability suits against politicians or agency officials who make  executive decisions, take administrative actions, award procurement contracts or initiate any other governmental actions that corporations simply don’t like?

Clearly, corporations are now empowered to spend millions advocating the defeat of the politicians during elections. But, are they also empowered to seek damages against the politicians or their appointees for violations of  their free speech rights or political advocacy for the actions taken or the decisions made which are regarded as being adverse to their  interests?

The potential expansion of liability and the budget busting potential of such liability should be more of a concern than whether corporations will now have an expanded right to spend money speaking about and advocating the defeat or election of politicians.