Madison, Wi. – End Citizens United (ECU) today endorsed Tammy Baldwin for U.S. Senate. A fierce critic of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, Baldwin has proven that she’s a leader in the battle to fix the broken campaign finance system.
“Throughout her life, Tammy Baldwin has never been afraid to speak out against a rigged system or fight back against forces that most people wouldn’t have the courage to take on – that’s just who she is. She’s tough, and she isn’t afraid to take on Big Money,” said Tiffany Muller, executive director of End Citizens United. “Baldwin went to Washington to stand up for the people of Wisconsin – not the corporate special interest who are trying to buy our elections. ECU is proud to endorse her.”
“The Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision opened the floodgates of corporate special interest influence in our elections and increased the sway of the powerful and wealthy over our Democratic process,” said Baldwin. “We need to change this and I am grateful for the support of those who are fighting to take on a rigged system where Big Money matters more than the voice of ordinary citizens. When those at the top try to buy our democracy, I will fight back because your voice should be heard at the ballot box.”
Baldwin has openly called for overturning the disastrous Citizens United decision, and heavily criticized the outcome of the later McCutcheon vs. FEC decision. In the Senate, she co-introduced the We The People legislative reform package, to increase transparency, strengthen lobbying laws and restrict the revolving door, rein in untraceable money and ultimately overturn Citizens United. Baldwin also co-sponsored an amendment requiring companies with large revenues from the fossil fuel industry to disclose their political ad spending. Most recently, Baldwin opposed Neil Gorsuch’s nomination to the Supreme Court. Gorsuch has ruled that corporations are people and is expected to join the extreme wing of the Court to continue to allow unlimited and undisclosed spending in elections.
End Citizens United was established in March 2015 to counter the harmful effects of Citizens United and reform our campaign finance system. Last week, it announced that it has raised $4 million in the first quarter of 2017 and projects it will raise $35 million for the 2018 cycle, surpassing the $25 million it raised for the 2016 elections.
The grassroots group is entirely funded by small-dollar, grassroots donors and has grown to over 3 million members with an average contribution of $14, making it the 4th largest federal PAC of the 2016 cycle. With over 64,000 members across Wisconsin, ECU will help connect Baldwin’s campaign with local volunteers and activate its 330,000 small-dollar national donors to make sure she has the resources to win.
Information on Baldwin, including her answers to the ECU questionnaire, can be found here.
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