(The following was originally published in the Waltham News Tribune.)
Evan Falchuk, United Independent Party candidate for governor, is challenging all candidates for governor to take specific action to overturn Citizens United via a Constitutional Convention, and in the process end all spending from Super PACs.
“We have gotten used to hearing political leaders and candidates complain about the excessive influence of big money in politics, but we’ve seen no real action,” Falchuk said. “The U.S. Congress does not seem interested in addressing this, which leaves it to us in the states. We are not powerless to act in the face of a growing number of Super PACs.”
Falchuk pointed out that California joined Vermont as the first two states to officially call for a Constitutional Convention to amend the U.S. Constitution to overturn Citizens United. When two-thirds of the states make such a formal request, he noted, a Constitutional Convention will be convened. He said that if three-quarters of the states’ legislatures agree to overturn Citizens United at the convention, that would end the legal basis for Super PACs and what he calls their corrosive impact on democracy.