The Oregon Progressive Party commends Oregon U.S. Representatives Earl Blumenauer and Peter DeFazio for recently signing on as co-sponsors of the “We the People” proposed U.S. 28th Constitutional Amendment (HJR 48).

Since the January 2010 U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United decision much interest has been expressed in Congress and by citizens working at the local and state level in amending the Constitution to address the granting to corporations of the right to freely spend corporate funds on elections campaigns.  The Court did so by concluding that corporations have constitutional rights--that they are in effect human beings with constitutional rights.  

Oregon and 15 other states have now called for a constitutional amendment to at least overturn Citizens United.  The “We the People” proposed amendment would go further by amending the U.S. Constitution to say that corporations are not people and money is not speech. Such an amendment would overturn court decisions going back to Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad (1886), which gave 14th Amendment human rights to corporations, and would include more recent decisions like Buckley v Valeo, First National Bank of Boston v Bellotti, and others.

Oregon Progressive Party State Councilmember, David Delk, said, “The forward thinking exhibited by Oregon Representatives Blumenauer and DeFazio is cause to be hopeful that the voice of the people to end this regime of corporate domination is being heard in the halls of Congress.”

The Oregon Progressive Party calls on all other Oregon U.S. Representatives to follow the lead of Representatives Blumenauer and DeFazio. And it further calls on Oregon U.S. Senators Wyden and Merkley to introduce the same legislation into the U.S. Senate.