WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips is backing a bill that would overturn Citizens United, his campaign announced in a press release Jan. 31.
The freshman legislator of Minnesota’s 3rd Congressional District has co-sponsored the Democracy for All Amendment, which is a part of a larger campaign finance and election reform bill that Phillips co-sponsored in January. The bill would overturn the 2010 Supreme Court ruling that allowed more election spending by corporations, labor unions and wealthy people, the press release said.
“Ours is a system of checks and balances, and in times of great consequence, duty falls on Congress and the states to rectify unintended outcomes of the Supreme Court’s decisions,” Phillips said in the statement. “In order to preserve our democracy, we must come together to end the corrupting influence of money in politics — and we cannot do that until the Citizens United decision has been overturned.”
In his campaign, Phillips refused campaign contributions from political action committees, federal lobbyists and members of Congress or their campaign committees.
The release cites national polls that show the majority of U.S. residents support a constitutional amendment overturning the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, including 66 percent of Republicans and 85 percent of Democrats.
The bill is authored by Rep. Ted Deutch (D-FL), Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) and Rep. John Katko (R-NY).