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Every election cycle we’re told, “That’s just how politics works.” But that shrug has a price: a system in which a few outsized checkbooks can drown out millions of voices. That’s the topic of this week’s podcast from our strategic partner Campaign Legal Center, featuring former FEC chair Ellen Weintraub, CLC founder (and former FEC chair) Trevor Potter, and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI). It gives us a clear, sobering tour of how we got here — and how we get back.
A few things struck me:
Process matters. When the President removed an FEC commissioner without a replacement ready, it wasn’t just DC drama — it risked sidelining the only federal agency dedicated solely to policing money in federal elections. The FEC needs four votes to act; empty chairs mean zero enforcement. How convenient.
The “independence” fiction. After Citizens United and related rulings, unlimited “independent” spending exploded. On paper, independence prevents corruption. In practice, coordination loopholes and dark-money anonymity make that independence look awfully porous.
Threats we never see. The episode nails a quiet reality: the credible threat of a massive, anonymous spend can warp behavior before a single ad ever airs. That invisible leverage is corrosive — and it’s hard for voters to detect, let alone stop.
This isn’t partisan with the public. Across the spectrum, Americans hate dark money. Where we’ve put transparency to a vote (see Arizona’s Prop 211), it wins big. Sunlight remains popular — and powerful. After all, sunlight is the best disinfectant.
Listen to the episode and decide for yourself: are we okay with a system where the loudest voices are anonymous — and often not even from our own communities? I’m not. We can fix this. You can either listen through YouTube, or wherever you get podcasts.
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