Today Illinois PIRG Education Fund and Demos released a new analysis of the funding sources for the campaign finance behemoths, Super PACs. The findings confirmed what many have predicted in the wake of the Supreme Court's damaging Citizens United decision: since their inception in 2010, Super PACs have been primarily funded by a small segment of very wealthy individuals and business interests, with a small but significant amount of funds coming from secret sources.
READ Auction Democracy: The Rise of Super PACs and the 2012 Election
"Super PACs represent much of what is wrong with American democracy rolled neatly into one package," said Marites Velasquez, Field Organizer with Illinois PIRG. "They are tools that powerful special interests can use to work their will by drowning out the voices of ordinary Americans in a sea of sometimes secret cash."
"Super PACs are like kryptonite for our democracy," added Demos Democracy Counsel Adam Lioz. "They undermine core principles of political equality in favor of a bully-based system where the strength of a citizen's voice depends upon the size of her wallet."
