The Independent View: Constitutional Amendment to Reverse Supreme Court Citizens United v. FEC

The Democracy for All Amendment (SJRes 19)

Would allow Congress to regulate the raising and spending of money, including so-called "Super PAC" independent expenditures, while giving states the same authority to regulate campaign finance at their level.

1. Restores authority to the American people, through Congress and the states, to regulate and limit the raising and spending of money for federal political campaigns.

2. Allows states to regulate campaign spending at their level

3. Includes the authority to regulate and limit independent expenditures, like those from Super PACs

4. Would not dictate any specific policies or regulations, but instead would allow Congress to pass campaign finance reform legislation that withstands constitutional challenges

5. Expressly provides that any regulation authorized under the amendment cannot limit the freedom of the press.

U.S. Senator Tom Udall introduced the constitutional amendment. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Sens. Harkin (D-IA), Schumer (D-NY), Shaheen (D-NH), Whitehouse (D-RI), Tester (D-MT), Boxer (D-CA), Coons (D-DE), King (I-ME), Murphy (D-CT), Wyden (D-OR), Franken (D-MN), Klobuchar (D-MN), and Mark Udall (D-CO) cosponsored the amendment.

The Democracy for All Amendment (HJRes 119)

The Democracy for All Amendment is the product of months of collaboration between the House and Senate sponsors of earlier constitutional amendment proposals, constitutional scholars, and grassroots advocacy organizations committed to restoring the integrity of the American electoral process. In addition to overturning recent rulings like Citizens United and McCutcheon, the Democracy is for All Amendment also reverses the Supreme Court’s controversial holding in Buckley v. Valeo that spending money in elections is a form of speech protected by the First Amendment.