Stopping Another Corporate Power Grab

Now we're worrying about Corporate Statehood.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) threatens to topple the laws and regulations that protect the food we eat, air we breathe and jobs we work. Under the proposed deal, multinational companies just have to demonstrate a threat to their "expected future profits" from laws and regulations in order to bypass our court systems and directly sue national governments in private international tribunals that are accountable to no one. It'll enable big business to challenge increases in the minimum wage, on-the-job protections, environmental regulations, consumer safety laws and more. This corporate power, taken from sovereign nations, is called investor-state dispute settlement, or ISDS.

Yikes.

CWA members protesting big money in politics.

The Supreme Court's disastrous 2010 Citizens United decision, which granted corporations the same rights as people and opened the floodgates to unchecked corporate political spending, has a lot to do with how we got here.

For instance, members of the Industry Trade Advisory Committee on Intellectual Property Rights are among a handful of people who can actually read and comment on the draft text of the trade agreement. Members of Congress, journalists, labor representatives, environmentalists and others have not been allowed to see the 2,000-plus-page agreement. Membership in the committee is coveted and partly based on recommendations made from members of Congress. Coincidentally, it is entirely comprised of business and industry groups who are top political donors. A MapLight analysis found that the organizations represented on ITAC gave nearly $24 million to lawmakers between 2003 and 2012. They've also given a combined $758,295 to lawmakers sponsoring Fast Track legislation, which would speed trade deals like the TPP through Congress without debate or any opportunities for amendments.

In summary: Corporations that can directly benefit from the TPP are the exact same businesses that can now contribute unlimited sums of money thanks to Citizens United. And they've used those political war chests to lobby for a trade deal that will help them make even more money and give them new powers.

The fifth anniversary of that awful decision is quickly approaching. What will you be doing? Join CWA and allies to rally against big money corrupting our politics. All in all, we have organized over 130 events nationwide surrounding the anniversary. Hundreds of activists will be rallying together. Will you be there? If you can go, www.moneyout-votersin.org has a map of events.

If you can't go, sign on as a citizen co-sponsor of the Democracy for All amendment, a constitutional amendment to get money out of politics.

Get more information here.