April 18, 2012
I write to urge the Securities and Exchange Commission to issue a rule requiring publicly traded corporations to publicly disclose all their political spending.
Right-wingers have been telling us for years that corporations are accountable to no one but their shareholders. I assume, then, that their ideology must compel them to support an SEC disclosure mandate. I kid, of course. But anyone who believes that the individual should have the power to make a difference in this world must in good conscience support an SEC disclosure mandate, so that corporations can be accountable to the individuals whose funding makes their work possible.
The public -- as consumers of corporate goods -- certainly has a compelling interest in public disclosure as well, not merely because any member of the public can in theory become a shareholder in a corporation at any moment, but also because the public can decide to move their money to corporations that more appropriately line up with their values. And then, perhaps, a "free market" can begin to work its will in America.
Thank you for considering my comment.
Alec Mento
Philadelphia, PA