January 31, 2012
Securities and Exchange Commission
Dear Commission,
Right now, Super PACs don't have to disclose their unlimited corporate donations. That means they can keep the public in the dark about who's funding the ads flooding TV screens daily.
Not only is it unethical if the intent is slander, and if the recipient has to go to great length to verify the accuracy, and maybe can't, but it should be illegal. The Supreme Court was mistaken in the Citizens United decision that viewed corporate funded ads as free speech by a "person". In some cases an ad may very well be an opinion, substantiated or not, by a person. Who is the attribution accountable to.
Fourteen United States senators have formally asked you to use your regulatory authority to require that corporations disclose their spending in elections. I think that this should hold for wealthy individual backers as well.
Exercise your responsibility to the public you serve with SEC regulatory action to require public disclosure of corporate political contributions.
Sincerely,
Larry Bernstein