February 4, 2013
Dear Members of the Securities and Exchange Commission:
I was thrilled to hear that the SEC is considering issuing a rule that would require publicly traded corporations to publicly disclose ALL their spending on political activities.
It's way past time for this to happen.
I own stock. As an individual stock-holder, I supposedly get to vote once a year on changes to the corporations I hold stakes in. I am too tiny a voice to get anything done -- especially when the corporations don't have to disclose what they've been contributing to.
Corporations are NOT citizens. Please overturn Citizens United. Corporations are multi-national entities these days. It is not in our national interest to have them as political players. They are designed for one thing and one thing only: short term gain for their shareholders.
As a nation, we cannot be so short-sighted. As citizens we must be motivated by longer-term consequences to our individual actions. As a democracy, we literally cannot AFFORD to have corporations influencing our politics in ANY WAY!
Thank you SO MUCH for considering my comments. I am so grateful that you are considering real action on this issue!
Sincerely,
Susan C. Bryan