Much to the shagrin of Justice Samuel Alito, President Obama called for Congress to pass a bill to correct some of the problems that will be caused from the awful Supreme Court ruling in the Citizens United v. FEC case. Whether they'll listen is another story. I would hope this is one issue where they can get some Republicans to come along and get some legislation passed. When even Jim DeMint looks like a deer caught in the headlights over the issue of foreign companies being able to meddle in our elections I would certainly hope so.
That’s what I came to Washington to do. That’s why – for the first time in history – my Administration posts our White House visitors online. And that’s why we’ve excluded lobbyists from policy-making jobs or seats on federal boards and commissions.
But we can’t stop there. It’s time to require lobbyists to disclose each contact they make on behalf of a client with my Administration or Congress. And it’s time to put strict limits on the contributions that lobbyists give to candidates for federal office. Last week, the Supreme Court reversed a century of law to open the floodgates for special interests – including foreign corporations – to spend without limit in our elections. Well I don’t think American elections should be bankrolled by America’s most powerful interests, or worse, by foreign entities. They should be decided by the American people, and I urge Democrats and Republicans to pass a bill that helps correct some of these problems.
(Scarce Edit: This year's Joe Wilson moment? Not as major, to be sure, but just as telling. Alito seems to be saying "No way. Not true.")
