February 04, 2010 05:36 PM UTC

Feingold Teams Up with Bennet in Corporate Finance Reform

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• by: Middle of the Road

We have the Democratic Party of Pat Caddell and we have the Democratic Party of Progressive Senator Russ Feingold.

One is the latest consultant to be added to Andrew Romanoff’s campaign and is a mouthpiece of DLC talking points, making regular appearances on FOX News to bash Democrats and accuse President Obama of “gangster politics.”

The other has taken on the mantle as the most progressive Senator in Washington DC, taking up where Ted Kennedy’s legacy left off. Russ Feingold’s ardent support of campaign finance reform was dealt a death blow by the Supreme Court’s ruling that overturned a hundred years of limits on corporations. John McCain stated on Face the Nation that “campaign finance reform is dead.”

Feingold is not going down without a fight and has teamed up with Michael Bennet to push for reform through Congress. In an email to Bennet supporters, Senator Feingold details the partnership he has created with Senator Bennet to push back against the Supreme Court’s ruling. The full email is below the fold:

As you may have heard, the Supreme Court recently removed all limits on corporate money in our elections, giving them potentially unprecedented power to overwhelm the voices of people in our political process.

I’m disappointed the Court chose to ignore 100 years of precedent and judicial restraint, and instead decided to eliminate critical regulations that guaranteed citizens would always hold more influence over our elections than corporations and special interests. It was a terrible mistake. We must now find a way to restore these restraints and stop corporate control of our democracy.

Going into this fight, I am proud to have Senator Michael Bennet as a partner — he is as committed as I am to eliminating corporate influence in our elections, and restoring power to the people. But we need more than just the two of us leading this fight.

If you believe, as Senator Bennet and I do, that people should come first in our democracy, sign our “Put People First” petition today and join us in finding a solution to fight corporate control of our elections.

Right this minute, Michael and I, along with other concerned legislators, are reviewing our options to return our democracy to the American people instead of handing it over to corporations. I know Michael shares my strong belief in the importance of “We the people.” I consider Michael a great partner in this fight. We can’t afford to waste a minute building the grassroots movement that will lead to a solution to this terrible ruling by the Court.

And right now, our success depends on you. By signing the petition, you can send a message to Congress that finding a solution is of utmost importance to our democracy — and you will demand nothing less than that.

Please be sure to sign the “Put People First in Our Democracy” petition today.

Thank you so much for your support, and a special thank you to Michael for joining me in this fight. Ensuring we have fair elections has long been a priority for me, and, even in the face of this latest challenge, I know together we are strong enough to protect our elections and our democracy.

Sincerely,

Russ Feingold

U.S. Senator

This latest effort by Senators Feingold and Bennet, no matter where you stand on our Senate race, is a sight for sore eyes. We no longer have a choice–as voters, we have no alternative but to take a stand against corporations. Until we do, every election is going to be a free for all, bought and paid for by Corporate America. The Supreme Court has managed to gut corporate regulations–it’s now in Congress’s court to create legislation that reins them in.