AJR121: Joint Resolution Text

LRB-4028/4

SRM:kjf:ph

2011 - 2012 LEGISLATURE

2011 Assembly JOINT RESOLUTION 121

February 29, 2012 - Introduced by Representatives Pocan, C. Taylor, Berceau, Bernard Schaber, Bewley, E. Coggs, Doyle, Grigsby, Hintz, Molepske Jr, Pasch, Pope-Roberts, Roys, Sinicki and Turner, cosponsored by Senators C. Larson, Carpenter, Hansen, Jauch, Lassa, Risser, Vinehout and Wirch. Referred to Committee on Assembly Organization.

AJR121,1,3 Relating to: amending the U.S. Constitution via congressional action or constitutional convention to establish that corporations are not entitled to constitutional rights of natural persons and that money is not speech.

AJR121,1,7 Whereas, government of, by, and for the people has long been a cherished American value; and the people's fundamental and inalienable right to self-govern, and thereby secure rights to life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness is guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence; and

AJR121,1,9 Whereas, free and fair elections are essential to democracy and effective self-governance; and

AJR121,1,13 Whereas, corporations are not mentioned in the U.S. Constitution, and the people have never granted constitutional rights to corporations, nor have the people decreed that corporations have authority that exceeds the authority of the people of the United States; and

AJR121,2,2 Whereas, interpretation of the U.S. Constitution by appointed Supreme Court justices to include corporations in the term "persons" has long denied the peoples' exercise of self-governance by endowing corporations with constitutional protections intended for the people; and

AJR121,2,4 Whereas, the illegitimate judicial bestowal of political rights upon corporations usurps basic human and constitutional rights guaranteed to human persons; and

AJR121,2,7 Whereas, corporations are not and have never been human beings, and therefore they do not vote in elections and should not be categorized as persons for purposes related to elections for public office; and

AJR121,2,14 Whereas, the recent Supreme Court decision, Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, that rolled back the legal limits on corporate spending in the electoral process creates an unequal playing field and allows unlimited corporate spending to influence elections, candidate selection, and policy decisions, and to sway votes, and forces elected officials to divert their attention from the peoples' business, or even vote against the interest of their human constituents, in order to ensure competitive campaign funds for their own reelections; and

AJR121,2,18 Whereas, tens of thousands of people, organizations, and municipalities across the nation are joining with the Move to Amend movement to call for an amendment to the U.S. Constitution to abolish corporate constitutional rights and the doctrine of money as free speech; now, therefore, be it

AJR121,2,22 Resolved by the assembly, the senate concurring, That the U.S. Constitution be amended to firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutionally protected political speech; and, be it further

AJR121,3,2 Resolved, That the Wisconsin legislature and the people of Wisconsin give the Congress one year—365 days—from the date on which a total of at least two-thirds of the states have adopted similar Move to Amend resolutions to send the Move to Amend Amendment to the states for ratification; and

AJR121,3,6 Resolved, That if Congress has not sent the Move to Amend amendment to the states for ratification within that year, the legislature of Wisconsin applies for a national constitutional convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution for the express purpose of adopting the Move to Amend Amendment; and

AJR121,3,8 Resolved, That the state of Wisconsin calls on other states and jurisdictions to join with it in this action by enacting similar resolutions.

AJR121,3,9 (End)