“The last time Democrats won, in the House, won our largest majority since Watergate, in 2018, 185 Democratic candidates of all backgrounds, rural and urban, progressive and moderate, ran by not taking a dime in corporate money. It’s not naïve, it’s how we win Detroit! And it’s not just how you win a primary, it’s how you win a general! We can’t be in cahoots with the same money that is oppressing us! It’s not naïve Detroit it’s what we need and most importantly it’s what you deserve”…
We need a politics that treats the disease that brought us Donald Trump, not just the symptoms…
The 6 far Right unelected “national Senators” with lifetime terms on the Roberts Court (further) gutted the Voting Rights Act last term, and that (rightly) got most of the attention, but they also did this:
The Supreme Court struck down limits on coordinated spending between candidates and political parties on Tuesday, a win for Republicans that will fundamentally change how tens of millions of dollars are spent in congressional elections.
The decision will have an almost immediate impact on the midterms. Removing the limit on coordinated spending effectively gives candidates direct control over a far greater amount of money being spent on their races. It is also likely to increase the flood of political advertising that hits the airwaves each fall.
The 6-3 decision, which divided the court along its usual ideological lines, held that the limits violate the First Amendment.
The decision is a blow to Democrats, who argued that eliminating the limit on coordination would put more power into the hands of large donors who can cut bigger checks to party committees than to candidates. Republicans tend to get more money from large donors, while Democrats have been more reliant on small-dollar donors.
Stevens is not now and has never been reliant on small donors. Seventy percent of her money comes from issue PACS, corporate PACS, or wealthy individuals:
Senate candidate Haley Stevens talks often about manufacturing, taking on President Donald Trump and why she's the Democrat best positioned to win Michigan. The congresswoman has far less to say about the pro-Israel group that has spent millions trying to get her elected.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, and its affiliated groups have spent close to $30 million backing Stevens — their largest investment ever in a single race — as they seek to defeat progressive favorite Abdul El-Sayed in the Aug. 4 primary.
Stevens has largely avoided discussing the organization directly, even as its spending has reshaped the race. Asked twice about AIPAC during a July campaign stop in West Michigan, she responded for more than 800 words without mentioning the group a single time. Israel came up only once, when she said she "wanted to see the U.S. and Israel working together to rebuild Gaza."
"Anyone who supported me is supporting me because of my dedication to the people of Michigan, and the things that I have done for Michiganders," Stevens told The Associated Press when asked whether she welcomed AIPAC's support.
The issue carries particular weight in Michigan, home to the nation's largest Arab American population. Beyond Michigan, El-Sayed's progressive allies are framing the race as a broader test of whether grassroots organizing can overcome unprecedented outside spending — a divide the two candidates aired directly in a recent televised debate.
Continue watchingMichigan Matters talks regional transit and auto insurance reformfter the The four-term congresswoman raised half of what El-Sayed did in the latest fundraising period until June 30. Her team said in a statement that the campaign "is raising the resources we need to win this race."
Corporate PACs pay for advertising like this:
The United Auto Workers on Monday accused a corporate-backed super PAC supporting U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens of misleading Michigan voters by using the union’s logo in campaign ads.
The UAW issued a cease-and-desist letter to A Stronger Michigan over the super PAC’s use of the union’s distinctive wheel logo in ads promoting a candidate who doesn’t have its endorsement, the union said in a statement shortly before 6:30 p.m.
A Stronger Michigan has spent more than $12 million supporting Stevens, according to federal campaign finance disclosures.
That’s worse than the fake Obama endorsement she’s blanketing the state with. I’m surprised she bothered, since the Right side of the Party have determined in their usual fact-free analysis that labor unions are all white men so therefore traitors to, um, the white man, Joe Biden. Never mind that the UAW is the most diverse manufacturing union, especially in Detroit and environs. Remember! It doesn’t have to make sense!
They don’t need labor, or Arab Americans, or Muslims, or students, or anyone under 30, or anyone to the Left of Bill Clinton. They think they will win by pouring tens of millions of dollars into this race from the same donors who will back the eventual GOP opponent, Mike Rogers. And maybe they will. My best “state of the race” guess is Stevens is up by three and El-Sayed, although a quality individual and a great candidate, was always a long shot. But we won’t get this country back on track by abandoning campaign finance reform as an issue - all it does is create more cynicism and less real voter engagement.
