Press Release – January 25, 2014
Delaware Senate Majority Caucus
For Immediate Release
Contact: Jesse Chadderdon (302) 744-4282 or (302) 743-0945;
Patrick Jackson (302) 744-4046 or (302) 242-0036
Delaware Senate Majority Caucus
For Immediate Release
Contact: Jesse Chadderdon (302) 744-4282 or (302) 743-0945;
Patrick Jackson (302) 744-4046 or (302) 242-0036
Lawmakers call for constitutional convention and amendment to overturn Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision
Delaware could soon join several other states in calling for a constitutional convention and amendment that curbs money’s influence on campaigns.
Sen. Bryan Townsend, D-Newark, and Sen. Bryon Short, D-Brandywine Hundred, have introduced Senate Concurrent Resolution 6, which calls for an Article V Constitutional Convention where state delegations would pursue an amendment that reverses the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC – which came five years ago this month – and subsequent campaign finance developments.
Under Article V of the U.S. Constitution, a Constitutional Convention must be convened if called upon by two-thirds of all state legislatures. Delaware’s delegation would be comprised of state and local office holders, or those chosen locally, and not any federal appointees or elected officials.
The notion that corporations and special interests should have the same free speech rights as an individual citizen defies this country’s fundamental principles of democracy, Townsend said.
“James Madison wrote that the Congress of the United States of America should be ‘dependent on the people alone.’ Surely conveying one’s message to voters costs money, but there is a problem when so much of that money – or even unrelated expenditures – comes from a single wealthy individual or entity with special interests,” Townsend said.
If both houses of the General Assembly pass the Resolution, Delaware would join California, Illinois and Vermont in passing such a resolution. Similar efforts are working through the legislative process in several other states.
“I firmly believe that the way our elections are funded creates a sense of distrust among our constituents about the political process,” Short said. “The Citizens United case exacerbated this problem. I had hoped Congress would have acted, but in the absence of that, calling for a constitutional convention is the next appropriate step.”
Senate Concurrent Resolution 6 will be taken up by the General Assembly when it reconvenes in March.
Sen. Bryan Townsend, D-Newark, and Sen. Bryon Short, D-Brandywine Hundred, have introduced Senate Concurrent Resolution 6, which calls for an Article V Constitutional Convention where state delegations would pursue an amendment that reverses the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC – which came five years ago this month – and subsequent campaign finance developments.
Under Article V of the U.S. Constitution, a Constitutional Convention must be convened if called upon by two-thirds of all state legislatures. Delaware’s delegation would be comprised of state and local office holders, or those chosen locally, and not any federal appointees or elected officials.
The notion that corporations and special interests should have the same free speech rights as an individual citizen defies this country’s fundamental principles of democracy, Townsend said.
“James Madison wrote that the Congress of the United States of America should be ‘dependent on the people alone.’ Surely conveying one’s message to voters costs money, but there is a problem when so much of that money – or even unrelated expenditures – comes from a single wealthy individual or entity with special interests,” Townsend said.
If both houses of the General Assembly pass the Resolution, Delaware would join California, Illinois and Vermont in passing such a resolution. Similar efforts are working through the legislative process in several other states.
“I firmly believe that the way our elections are funded creates a sense of distrust among our constituents about the political process,” Short said. “The Citizens United case exacerbated this problem. I had hoped Congress would have acted, but in the absence of that, calling for a constitutional convention is the next appropriate step.”
Senate Concurrent Resolution 6 will be taken up by the General Assembly when it reconvenes in March.
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Press Contacts
Scott Goss
Communications Director
(302) 744-4180
scott.goss@delaware.gov
Dylan McDowell
Communications Assistant
(302) 744-4282
dylan.mcdowell@delaware.gov
Scott Goss
Communications Director
(302) 744-4180
scott.goss@delaware.gov
Dylan McDowell
Communications Assistant
(302) 744-4282
dylan.mcdowell@delaware.gov