When the United States Supreme Court ruled in the late 1970's that corporations are people, they opened up a can of worms and now Americans have to figure out how to get them back into the can. But sometimes, it can really go from bad to worse and in January of 2010, the Court ruled (Citizens United) that not only were corporations people but that money was speech and donations can therefore be essentially unlimited and anonymous. The result is what we see on the news every day: A legislative body that has to worry more about raising money than legislating and a completely partisan court.
The money now flowing into political campaign coffers has completely warped the political system. In response several organizations have sprung up to fight the corruption in an attempt to get money out of politics. One such group is MayDay Political Action Committee (PAC). PACs have been the main vehicle for wealthy donors with special interests to spread around “anonymous” donations and it seems only fitting that a PAC is now trying to fight money with money.
MayDay PAC is not the only organization trying to reduce the influence of big money. The internet news show “The Young Turks” has formed a PAC called Wolf Pack and is attempting to get a Constitutional Convention and lobby for an Amendment. But the difference with MayDay is that they are completely crowd-funded and, more importantly, they are now accepting Bitcoin for donations. Unlike many of the PACs and Super PACs in the United States, however, MayDay donors will have to play by the rules for contributions:
- I am a United States citizen or a permanent resident alien.
- This contribution is made from my own funds, and funds are not being provided to me by another person or entity for the purpose of making this contribution.
- I am making this contribution with my own personal credit card and not with a corporate or business credit card or a card issued to another person.
- I am at least eighteen years old.
- I am not a foreign national (permanent resident aliens excepted), federal contractor, national bank, or corporation chartered by an act of Congress
- The MayDay PAC is also not accepting anonymous donations and none of the donations are tax deductible.
Opening up to Bitcoin could prove to be a very smart move, especially if the PAC supports candidates who are in favor of an open internet and privacy. Hopefully, other like minded groups will also open their doors in the near future and take advantage of the faster and easier way to donate funds to your party or politician.