Corporations Aren't People

By Joshua Holland, AlterNetPosted on July 3, 2006, Printed on July 3, 2006 http://www alternet or!/story/3"#06/
Largely lost amid last week's Supreme Court rulings limiting President Bush's imperial powers and upholding Texas Republicans' 2 ! gerrymandering was a decision that put the kibosh on "ermont's campaign #inance and spending laws $$ the strictest in the nation by #ar% The &ustices' in a ($! decision' ruled that the limits were unconstitutional according to the standard set out in the landmark )*+( case' Buckley v. Valeo' which held that spending millions o# dollars to get elected is a protected #orm o# political speech% The ruling itsel# was hardly earth shattering, "ermont's spending limits may well ha-e been too onerous and e-en some o# the liberal &ustices expressed concern that the tight caps ga-e incumbents an un#air ad-antage% The court largely maintained the legal status .uo around an issue that's long been the sub&ect o# heated debate% But the decision re-eals yet again how deeply entrenched the role o# big money is in the /merican political system% 0-er the last )1 years' bi2arre legal doctrines ha-e de-eloped that ha-e e##ecti-ely codi#ied the power o# special interests% 3n addition to the idea in Buckley that 'money e.uals speech'' we'-e been saddled with the 0rwellian concept o# 4corporate personhood%4 4Corporate personhood4 gi-es corporations $$ entirely arti#icial entities created by the state $$ the same indi-idual rights that the #ramers #ought and died to secure #or #lesh$and$ blood citi2ens 5or at least #or white male property$holders' but you get the idea6% The doctrine started in 7ngland reasonably enough, it was only by considering corporations 4persons4 that they could be taken to court and sued% But during the )*th century' the Robber Barons and a #ew corrupt &urists deep in their pockets took the concept to a whole new le-el% /#ter the Ci-il 8ar' while many o# those same interests were #ighting to keep /#rican /mericans #rom being en#ranchised' the doctrine took on new weight $$ the 7.ual Protection clause o# the )9th /mendment was extended to corporations' and Thomas :e##erson slowly rolled o-er in his gra-e% The trend o# granting more and more rights to corporations continues today% 5/ detailed discussion o# how this all de-eloped can be #ound here%6 /s long as these ideas are embedded in our legal system' talk o# cleaning up go-ernment $$ o# campaign #inance and lobby re#orm $$ are &ust that; talk% 0n these #undamental issues o# democratic participation' incremental re#orm is a road leading nowhere% 8hich is why we need bold' populist ideas #or real structural re#orm% 3 say let's rip a page #rom <arl Ro-e's Scorched$7arth Politics #or =ummies and o##er a progressive Constitutional /mendment that would end this madness once and #or all%

That could be as simple as a one$line amendment that rolls back Buckley by explicitly stating that regulating the amount o# money donated to campaigns or setting limits on what candidates spend on ad-ertising isn't the same as putting limits on political speech% But 3 think something e-en bolder is in order% 3 think it's time #or a =e#ense o# >uman Citi2enship /mendment $$ language that would strip the 4personhood4 #rom corporations and gi-e re#ormers a #ighting chance to establish a true democracy in the ?nited States% 3t should be as brie# and straight#orward as the Republicans' gay marriage amendment;

S7CT30@ )% Citi2enship in the ?nited States shall be con#erred only on human beings% @either this Constitution nor the constitution o# any State' nor state or #ederal law' shall be construed to re.uire that citi2enship or the legal incidents thereo# be granted to corporations' partnerships' proprietorships or trusts%

This would be great policy i# enacted' and great politics regardless o# whether it were to become law% / #ailing campaign to restore human citi2enship would bring what has long been a contentious debate in legal and public policy circles into the mainstream% 3t would be the le#t's turn to decry 4&udicial acti-ism4 o# the most pernicious kind' and it would be a -aluable opportunity #or some real ci-ic education #or the broader electorate% 8e need that, polls show that a ma&ority o# -oters #eel that corporations ha-e too much in#luence o-er the political realm' but most /mericans don't understand the mechanisms with which they maintain and wield that power% 3t's an approach that might take a while to gain traction% But think about what the right has been able to accomplish with the constitutional amendments they push to ban #lag$ burning or gay marriage% They'-e taken a wonky narrati-e about 4&udicial tyranny4 which' on its #ace' is a ludicrously bad political argument and they'-e made it into a hot button issue% They did that with twenty$#i-e years o# Aederalist Society con#erences and 8all Street :ournal op$eds and the result is that a point o# contention between legal scholars became a central campaign line #or the re$election o# Beorge 8% Bush% The Bush team o##ered up his di-isi-e$but$popular #ederal 4marriage amendment4 during the 2 9 campaign' e-en though it had no chance o# actually passing% But on the state le-el' similar measures passed eighteen times' thanks always to a predictable spike in Republican turnout $$ big turnouts that helped Bush win a second term% 5"irginia's Senate recently -oted to put a marriage amendment on the ballot' and conser-ati-e lawmakers in Caryland are trying to do the same in time #or the @o-ember election in an attempt to boost Republican Bo-ernor Robert 7hrlich's re$election

prospects%6 =e#ending human citi2enship is a chance to excite the progressive base in the same way that the right's wedge$issue amendments rally their #undamentalist ground troops time and time again% There's nothing new about turning your opponents' best tactics against them% / demorali2ed right did it when they were trying to re$group a#ter the pummeling Barry Boldwater' their Bolden Boy' took in his landslide election loss in )*(9% They looked to the then dominant =emocratic coalition #or a clue as to how to turn it around% Paul 8eyrich' #ounder o# the Aree Congress Aoundation' reminisced about those heady days;

4%%%study and application o# your opposition's best practices can spur greater inno-ation and success%%%%Back in the )*+ s%%% we stressed the importance o# grass$roots organi2ing% 8e took a page #rom organi2ed labor's playbook' modi#ied it to #it our constituency and purposes' and started winning primaries and elections%4

Constitutional amendments that #ire up the Republican base are among the Ro-ian right's 4best practices'4 and there's no reason progressi-es can't emulate them% 8e hear all the time that there's a dearth o# big ideas on the le#t% >ere's one that would ha-e a pro#ound impact on a broken political system% Some smaller groups ha-e been lobbying #or this kind o# re#orm #or years $$ it's time #or someone in the progressi-e establishment to pick it up and run with it% Joshua Holland is an AlterNet staff writer.

$ 2006 %ndependent &edia %nstitute All ri!hts reser'ed (iew this story online at: http://www alternet or!/story/3"#06/