You can support me by spreading the word.
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Download this flier, print double sided, cut in two and distribute to help spread the word.
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Equal representationThe foundational basis of democracy is one vote one voice and everyone has an equal opportunity to run for office. Every person counts. Our democracy is failing primarily because our system of government allows legalized bribery in the form of campaign contributions. Contributions buy representation. The conventional knowledge is that only the wealthy, powerful or well connected candidates have a chance to win an election.
I have chosen to run a campaign that relies on voters. I won't quit the race when I run out of money because I am not relying on money. I am relying on you the voter. We live in an era where a voter doesn't have to rely on biased advertising in order to find out about the candidates. We can read for ourselves. We can do our own research. I believe financial contributions are actually what's wrong with our democracy. Winning while owing endless favors is not winning at all, it's losing. Even our voucher system, which is better than most, still runs on contributions and advertising and disproportionately represents wealth and power. If elected, I will not owe any favors to any special individual or group of any kind. The only endorsement I'm seeking is yours. If you like what you read and want a candidate that represents you and your ideas, spread the word to your friends and family. Together we can realize our American ideals of diversity, liberty, justice, representation, and opportunity for all. No Fossil Fuel Money PledgeEven though I am not accepting financial contributions, I take the No Fossil Fuel Money Pledge and encourage my running mates to do as well.
I pledge not to take contributions over $200 from oil, gas, and coal industry executives, lobbyists, and PACs and instead prioritize the health of our families, climate, and democracy over fossil fuel industry profits. - Dr. Clinton Bliss |
Campaign Finance ReformFirst Amendment rights are the freedom of speech & press, freedom of assembly, freedom of religion and freedom to petition the government. Not all First amendment rights have the same protections. Commercial speech can be regulated. Political speech has super protections.
The knife in the back of democracy: In 2010, with Citizens United v the Federal Election Commission, a Supreme court decision explicitly determined that spending money by corporations is a form of free speech, and reversed a law in which the intent was to keep money out of politics. Now corporations (and unions) can spend as much money as they want to voice their political opinion about a candidate or issue. There is a nuance here: they still cannot donate unlimited funds directly to say, Trump or Bernie, but they can buy as many ads on TV or the internet, or boost as many posts on facebook and twitter, to smear someone or to promote someone or a law on the ballot, etc. This is the death knell for the American experiment, as our nation is now essentially a marketplace. Citizens have morphed into consumers; the main means of communication is marketing, branding and commercials; and corporations essentially rule this part of the world. The idea of voting has been turned on its head, where one person one vote is now one person, one dollar, one corporation, millions of dollars. Add to this that corporations are fictitious personhoods, without heart or the ability to understand or be happy, or care about other people's happiness and well-being. Campaign finance reforms in our city and in other areas of our nation have been tinkering with the system. Wealth has it's own private privileges. There is certainly no good reason why we need to offer our wealthy elite preferential treatment in our public institutions of government, justice, and education while we largely ignore our poor and minority populations. Working together we can surpass the advertising and spin, and carry forward in one voice, one vote, with equal representation and opportunity for all. |
