FRED WERTHEIMER DEMOCRACY 21 FOUNDER TALKS TO SHOCK AND AWESOME ABOUT THE DANGERS OF SUPER PACs TAKING OVER

 

Fred Wertheimer is the Founder and President of Democracy 21, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to strengthen our democracy and ensure the integrity and fairness of government decisions and elections.

 

 

Wertheimer has been described by The New York Times as “the country’s leading proponent of campaign finance reform,” by Washington Post columnist E. J. Dionne as “the eminence grise of the campaign reform movement,” and by Brit Hume of Fox News, as “Mr. Campaign Finance Reform.” The Boston Globe described Wertheimer as a “legendary open-government activist,” and The Washington Post said “Democracy 21 is one of Washington’s foremost watchdog groups.

 

 

In an interview with Shock and Awesome today, Wertheimer lamented about the new SUPER PAC culture, that has driven the pace of the 2012 race. “We have a system now where super rich people and corporate spenders have far too much influence on the outcome of elections.” Ones who “are able to buy influence with the people that are elected.”

 

Hear the entire interview with Wertheimer Thursday on the Shock and Awesome podcast “Believe” then listen to the Tux ask why rich people don’t simply spend their money on cool ideas like “cars that drive themselves,”  instead. Since when did being wealthy become about imposing your values on the rest of the country?