IV 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 1275 

Expressing disapproval of the decision issued by the Supreme Court in 

Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 20, 2010 

Mr. YARMUTH (for himself, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, 

Ms. PINGREE of Maine, and Mr. COHEN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on House Administration, and 

in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 

provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing disapproval of the decision issued by the Supreme 

Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. 

Whereas the majority opinion issued by the Supreme Court 

of the United States on January 21, 2010, in Citizens 

United v. Federal Election Commission overturns longstanding Supreme Court precedent barring corporations 

from making independent expenditures from general 

treasury funds to expressly support or oppose candidates 

in Federal elections; 

Whereas in issuing such opinion, the majority engaged in judicial activism by expanding the scope of their decision 

from a determination of whether an advertisement for a 


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politically charged film made by the non-profit corporation Citizens United that was critical of a candidate for 

President constituted an electioneering communication 

under the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 to 

a sweeping decision on the constitutionality of corporate 

use of general treasury funds for independent expenditures on political advertisements in Federal elections; 

Whereas pursuant to the majority opinion in Citizens United, 

Federal law now permits the expansion of the role that 

special interest groups, including oil companies, Wall 

Street banks, health insurance companies, unions, trade 

associations, and companies that received money under 

the Troubled Asset Relief Program created by the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (Public Law 

110–343) are able to play in politics; 

Whereas under such opinion, Federal law now permits Government-owned entities, including American International 

Group, the Federal National Mortgage Association, the 

Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, and automobile companies that are now subject to Federal control 

to spend taxpayer dollars to expressly support or oppose 

candidates in Federal elections; 

Whereas under such opinion, Federal law now permits domestic corporations owned or controlled by foreign governments, foreign corporations, and foreign individuals to 

make independent expenditures to expressly support or 

oppose candidates in United States Federal elections, including— 

(1) CITGO Petroleum Corporation, which is owned 

and operated by the Government of Venezuela; 


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(2) Saudi Aramco and Motiva Enterprises, which 

are fully or partially owned by the Government of Saudi 

Arabia; and 

(3) Lenovo Group Limited, Haier Group, China 

Telcom Corporation, Limited, and the China State Construction Engineering Corporation, which are fully or 

partially owned by the Government of China; 

Whereas in treating corporations and living persons equally 

with respect to free speech rights under the First Amendment, the Supreme Court has effectively bestowed on corporations aspects of personhood, which, as the dissenting 

opinion stated, ‘‘have no consciences, no beliefs, no feelings, no thoughts, no desires’’; 

Whereas in effectively bestowing on corporations aspects of 

personhood, the majority opinion ensures that the voices 

of individual citizens of the United States must now compete against voices funded by the vast resources of multibillion dollar, multinational corporations, thus diminishing the individual right of freedom of speech guaranteed to every individual citizen of the United States by 

the First Amendment to the Constitution; 

Whereas according to the Small Business Administration, 

half of all the individuals employed in the United States 

in the private sector are employed by small businesses; 

Whereas pursuant to the majority opinion in Citizens United, 

Federal law now permits large corporations to use general treasury funds to influence public policy and to advocate for regulations and promote deregulation designed to 

favor large corporations over small businesses; 

Whereas pursuant to such opinion, Federal law now permits 

corporations to exercise vast power to advocate for the 


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type of deregulation policies favoring large corporations 

that led to the 2008 global economic crisis and continue 

to jeopardize economic recovery in the United States; 

Whereas legal experts have stated that such opinion will unleash a flood of new corporate money into the democratic 

process in the United States that will separate voters 

from their representatives and make candidates more beholden to special interests; 

Whereas, on January 21, 2010, more than 40 current and 

former corporate executives sent a letter to the Speaker 

of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, expressing the ‘‘corrosive influence of special interest money’’ 

and urging the House of Representatives to act to address the Citizens United decision and reform the current 

campaign finance system; 

Whereas pursuant to the majority opinion, Exxon Mobil Corporation could expend $8,000,000 on each congressional 

race in the United States, which would account for less 

than 10 percent of the corporation’s profits in 2008; 

Whereas the dissenting opinion asserted that after the decision by the majority, ‘‘[C]orporations with large war 

chests to deploy on electioneering may find democratically 

elected bodies becoming much more attuned to their interests.’’; and 

Whereas the dissenting opinion stated that the majority opinion in Citizens United— 

(1) ‘‘[T]hreatens to undermine the integrity of elected institutions across the Nation.’’; 

(2) ‘‘[I]s a rejection of the common sense of the 

American people, who have recognized a need to prevent 

corporations from undermining self-government since its 


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founding, and who have fought against the distinctive 

corrupting potential of corporate electioneering since the 

days of Theodore Roosevelt.’’; 

(3) ‘‘[O]perates with a sledgehammer rather than a 

scalpel when it strikes down one of Congress’s most significant efforts to regulate the role that corporations and 

unions play in electoral politics.’’; and 

(4) ‘‘[C]reates new opportunities for the mirror 

image of quid pro quo deals: threats, both explicit and 

implicit.’’: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) believes that multinational corporations, 

3 such as CITGO Petroleum Corporation, which is 

4 controlled by the Government of Venezuela, should 

5 not have a greater voice in the democratic process 

6 in the United States than citizens of the United 

7 States; 

8 (2) disapproves of the majority opinion in Citi9 zens United v. Federal Election Commission, because 

10 it allows the interests of corporations, both foreign 

11 and domestic, to supersede the voices of citizens of 

12 the United States in the democratic process; 

13 (3) believes the majority opinion in Citizens 

14 United will further increase the flow of money into 

15 elections in the United States and have a corrosive 

16 effect on the electoral process, the cornerstone of de17 mocracy in the United States, by separating the peo18 ple from their elected representatives; and 


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1 (4) encourages the House of Representatives 

2 and the Senate to work in a bipartisan manner to 

3 limit the influence of special interest groups in Fed4 eral elections in light of the decision rendered by the 

5 Supreme Court in Citizens United. 

Æ 


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