Community | March 13, 2010 | 33 comments

Corporate entity to run for Congress

source: http://rawstory.com/2010/03/corporate-candidate-kicks-bid-congress/

SleepDirt
When the Supreme Court decided the case Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, henceforth allowing corporate soft money to influence U.S. elections, Rep. Alan Grayson (D-FL) cynically opined that it would lead to the election of the "congressman from Wal-Mart."

Turns out, he may be right.

Meet Murray Hill, Inc., the first corporation to run for Congress in the United States.

"Until now, corporations only influenced politics with high-paid lobbyists and backroom deals," the company's YouTube account declares. "But today, thanks to an enlightened supreme court, corporations now have all the rights the founding fathers meant for us. That's why Murray Hill Incorporated is taking democracy's next step-- running for Congress."

Hill says it plans to file as a Republican for the GOP primary in Maryland's eighth congressional district, currently represented by Democrat Chris Van Hollen.

Van Hollen, along with Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY), introduced legislation in February they hope will help blunt the effect of the court's decision by restoring some of the restrictions on corporate campaign spending. Hill reportedly has "no beef" with Van Hollen, though the position seems more part of the campaign's schtick than anything.

The company, a self-titled "progressive" messaging firm, was launched in 2005 by one Eric Hensal, who used to work with Group360, an advocacy organization in Washington, D.C.

Hill said in a statement that its campaign would put people "second, or even third," according to The Washington Post.

"It's a new day," Hill's ad says. "Until now, corporations influenced politics with high paid lobbyists and backroom deals. However, as much as corporate interests gave to politicians, we could never be absolutely sure they would do our bidding. But today, thanks to an enlightened Supreme Court, corporations now have all the rights the founding fathers meant for us. It's our democracy: we bought it, we paid for it and we're going to keep it."

Hill "wanted to run as a Republican because we feel the Republican Party is more receptive to our basic message that corporations are people, too," campaign manager William Klein told the Post.

When the Supreme Court first decided Citizens United, 41 industry leaders signed a letter to Congress urging the end of what they called corporate "bribery."

"Is there a difference between campaign contributions and bribery?" said Alan Hassenfeld, chairman of Hasbro, Inc, who co-signed the letter. "It is long past the time to stop requiring that our elected officials moonlight as telemarketers raising money for their re-election campaigns rather then devoting all their time to solving the problems before this nation."

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33 comments // Corporate entity to run for Congress // Video

  • Davidod
    • 0
      Davidod  

    • Uh, first thing we're going to have to do is raise education standards in this country.

      First lesson: teach the difference between a corporation and the product they market.

      For example, Viagra is produced by Pfizer. Viagra is the trade-marked brand name, while Pfizer is the name of the corporation that produces Viagra. Same deal with Kotex, produced by Kimberly-Clark, Inc.

      So don't be insulting the president by calling him 'Pres. Viagra'. It would be "Pres. Pfizer"!

      Oh, and If Kimberly-Clark wants to run for vice-president, then cool! Once they get into the flow of campaigning, the "Pfizer/Kimberly-Clark" ticket would be unstoppable, impossible to beat!! (Is that a record: two puns in one sentence?)

    • 1 year ago
  • Toughth
    • 0
      Toughth  

    • We have let the judges and conservitives run amouk in our politics and judicial system for the last ten years. Near the end of the Roman republic the judges and senat of Rome did about the same as we are doing to ourselves now. They let the special intrests override the good of the Republic. The most noteable case In point was a man named Gaius Verres who was a plunderer of the republic and a peer. As a Nation we cannot afford to let people that are out for their own pocket book rule this land. Special intrests do not have the good of our democracy as the primary reason for being in our government. They are only after there own enrichment at the throat of the people of this nation.

    • 1 year ago
  • bluestranger
  • LibertyMinded
  • Davidod
    • 0
      Davidod  
    • LibertyMinded:

      No vote needed. That's what special-interest groups are, unelected forces that influence American politics more than you do....

      I say we do it! The American political process is already completely handicapped, having already been drawn and quartered.

    • 1 year ago
  • indecisiveh
  • PressCore
    • 0
      PressCore  
    • indecisiveh:

      Here's an idea: What if all the 300 Million plus people living in the USA
      as its citizens were to incorporate ? And what if the 10,000 people who
      turn out at protest marches were to confederate into a common cause
      type of mega Corporation. Carrying out this logical train of thought even
      further, What if we were to tier these multiple common cause mega
      Corporate confederations into a faction more collossal than Big Pharma,
      Big Insurance, Big Prison, yada, yada,so that We the People Corporations
      could lobby even more effectively than Monsanto, Du Pont etc ?
      2 can play that game. If you read the sordid history of corruption involving
      the original Corporate bribery of a court reporter, Forgery of the Court ruling,
      lobbying of State and Federal legislative members to incorporate that
      original bribed Forgery into legislation...And now the sordid escalation
      of the Corporate corruption by the heinous decision of the SCOTUS...
      Then you can understand how when We the People ignore our civil duty
      to mobilize, we've become dominated by Big Business. Countering that
      will take a Reformation. A " Corporation " is a body of cells. One man, one cell.

    • 1 year ago
  • csmonut
    • 0
      csmonut  

    • Good satire...but all the same, if they are serious and allowed to file, it will be one of the most single reasons for a very quick and total downfall of the US.

    • 1 year ago
  • sidpomy
    • +1
      sidpomy  

    • This bleeds satire... and I must say, quite hilarious. Who knows though, could be a reality in this country if we continue on the path the Roberts court is leading us.

    • 1 year ago
  • John_Dugan
  • dalistuff
  • SleepDirt
  • Almibry
  • JonRaymond
  • Almibry
    • 0
      Almibry  
    • JonRaymond:

      Probably not. If you really wanted to make them eligible for the death penalty, they'd probably claim it was an attempt at genocide or something stupid like that.

    • 1 year ago
  • desertcat
    • +3
      desertcat  

    • I think the first company that should be a member of Congress is Kotex. Think about it a company that control the flow of money with their absorbent minds, prevents leaks by plugging up the holes in the system and allows you to wear the latest fashions in light colors by preventing accidental discharges. Bonus each month for the person most suffering from PMS. Now the repugs can have it all, remain in corporate America, have a job in Congress. Try proving those million dollars bonuses were illegal. "May the4 flow be with you"

    • 1 year ago
  • JonRaymond
  • Almibry
  • desertcat
  • desertcat
    • +1
      desertcat  
    • Almibry:

      now is that a nice thing to say to a lady by a lady. after 30 years got a bit of revenge on kotex. you look like a kid, your time will come when you are liberated. But fear not should kotex win Congress Viagara will run next. and they win by the tip of their head.

    • 1 year ago
  • Almibry
  • desertcat
    • +1
      desertcat  
    • Almibry:

      VIAGARA A VOTE FOR THIS HEADS UP COMPANY IS A VOTE FOR THE STAND UP FELLOW. THE ONE THAT YOU CAN COUNT ON TO LAST THE DEBATE, THE ONE WHO WON'T BE WEEPING AFTER THE FIRST ROUND, A VIAGARA GUY CAN BE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A DIAMOND AND A RHINESTONE.. WHY WEAR PLASTIC WHEN YOU CAN WEAR RUBBER/ THAT OLD INCH OR TWO JOKE DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO THE VIAGARA CANDIDATE. VOTE FOR DICK VIAGARA AND YOU'LL BE PURRING ALL NIGHT....AND THE NEXT AND THE NEXT.......STAY TUNED FOR A REBUTTAL FROM CANDIDATE MATTRESS R US.

    • 1 year ago
  • SleepDirt
  • Progresshiv
  • emilio
    • +1
      emilio  

    • This scares me as much as Sarah Palin. I keep hoping both are jokes. BUT IN THE CASE THAT THIS IS LEGIT--people need to get out on the streets and show corporations that the difference between a REAL human and a corporate entity assuming the status of a person--is that people have feelings; and right now I feel pissed that this country will so quickly (and willingly!!) sell out it's future.

    • 1 year ago
  • Davidod
    • +1
      Davidod  
    • Image
    • emilio:

      If this bothers you, don't watch "Idiocracy", where the corporations have completely taken over the gov't, and corporations are the 'tail' wagging the 'dog'.

      From the movie, Gatorade had devised a scheme to increase their sales by controlling the water supply pipelines, and apparently crops/plants don't grow so well when given Gatorade! The protagonist devised the novel (brilliant) idea to use water, instead; crops started flourishing again!

      http://richardsona.squarespace.com/storage/idiocracy_money.jpg

    • 1 year ago
  • Davidod
    • 0
      Davidod  
    • Image

    • http://theonion.com

      I dunno: I'd vote for Apple, maybe Disney.... They seem like they're pretty honest, family values types of candidates, and maybe that what we need get the country moving in the RIGHT direction, LOL! :)

      I looked for the link to theonion.com, thinking this MUST be a joke... It's gotta be sly commentary, raising the issue of increased control via corporatism.

      I say let a corporation run, just as long as it's not News Corp: those guys are evil, and they've already got SUCH an unfair head-start over the others...

      Hmm, looking at that cartoon, and I didn't know Honest Abe was a "Founding Father", a framer of that fancy-schmancy document they keep in DC (What's it called? The Constitutwhatyamacallit?). Learn sometin' new every day, eh? :)

    • 1 year ago
  • SleepDirt
    • 0
      SleepDirt  
    • Davidod:

      Yeah but, what happens when you elect an ostensibly 'honest' corporation and on inauguration night it undergoes a leveraged buyout by the Chinese People's liberation Army?

    • 1 year ago
  • Davidod
    • 0
      Davidod  
    • SleepDirt:

      My corporation is bigger than your corporation, LOL!

      Actually, one of the disturbing concerns with the recent Supreme Court decision is that corporations also answer to foreign shareholders, and lifting campaign-financing restrictions and allowing corporations to support a specific candidate means elections are guaranteed to go towards the candidate backed by the corporation that can outspend the others; Americans are stoopid (sic) enough to allow T.V. ads to influence their vote.

      It would NOT surprise me in the least if this decision is viewed as a home-run for the Chinese, as they'd reasonably like to be able to have a say in how their largest debtor-tenant behaves, much as a land-lord wants to be sure the tenant doesn't trash their house.

      China would like to be able to influence the politics of a country who's bonds they hold, and is deeply on the hook to repay the debt; this decision will allow them to try (as well as being a boon to American media outlets, for whom this decision is a veritable job creation stimulus bill).

      We've seen how China is threatening to influence Google's business in China (which makes sense: it's obviously THEIR population, and their Country), but now want to expand that control over Americans in the U.S.

      Nothing is different in 2010: he who has the money makes the rules. China's our land-lord, and they want to be able to control how us, their tenants, behave. And we're letting them, having sold out our independence for the sake of Chinese-made, lead-filled beads and baubles.

    • 1 year ago
  • fun_size
    • +1
      fun_size  

    • "...thanks to an enlightened Supreme Court, corporations now have all the rights the founding fathers meant for us. It's our democracy: we bought it, we paid for it and we're going to keep it."

      No fucking way... I so wanna bitch slap every conservative member of the supreme court right now.

    • 1 year ago
  • WakeUpPeople
    • +2
      WakeUpPeople  

    • Corporatist bastards on Corrupital Hill and in the Supreme Court. Sounds like business as usual. We have strayed SOOOOOO far from where we started.

      "I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations which dare already to challenge our government to a trial by strength, and bid defiance to the laws of our country." ~Thomas Jefferson

    • 1 year ago
  • KSirys
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