PROTECTING DEMOCRACY:
LIMITING MONEY’S INFLUENCE IN POLITICS

Ted Deutch

DESCRIPTION: The 2012 campaign season marks the first presidential election to be conducted in the aftermath of the Supreme Court’s 5 to 4 ruling in Citizens United v. FEC. While most Americans agree that the rising role of money in politics has contributed to dysfunction in Washington, the Supreme Court’s ruling in Citizens United declared limits on political spending by corporations, unions, and other organizations to be unconstitutional. This controversial decision paved the way for the rise of Super PACs, a new type of political action committee that can raise unlimited sums of money from corporations and billionaires as a result of disclosure loopholes in federal-election law. Congressman Ted Deutch, a Democrat who serves on the House Judiciary Committee, will provide an overview of Citizen United’s impact on the 2012 presidential election and discuss his efforts at the national level to overturn Citizens United and fix our nation’s broken campaign-finance system.

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Congressman Ted Deutch has represented Palm Beach and Broward Counties in the US House of Representatives since April 2010. Recently described by the influential Washington newspaper Roll Call as a young, rising leader in the House Democratic Caucus, Congressman Deutch’s priorities include protecting the health and financial security of America’s retirees, creating new jobs in South Florida, investing in public education, and building infrastructure that gives American businesses a competitive advantage in the global economy. As a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and a lifelong activist in the pro-Israel community, Congressman Deutch is also an expert on US efforts to thwart the Iranian nuclear threat and protect Israel’s security.