Even the corporation itself doesn't know what it is doing; that is, the corporation might have 10,000 shareholders and they are the cooperation. The corporation is a legal fiction, as our colleague says, that allows a board of directors to make decisions on behalf of those thousands of people who own stock. So they are not spending their own money, they are spending money that belongs to the stockholders. But those stockholders have no idea how that money is being spent under Citizens United. So it is not just corporations spending money that is secret from the rest of us, it is the officers spending it secretly from the corporation itself, and that is the stockholders.
Jeff Merkley: “Even the corporation itself doesn't know what it is doing; that is, the corporation might have 10,000 shareholders and…”
On the recordJuly 16, 2012
Share
More from Jeff Merkley
Oct 2, 2026
The SRS program provides crucial payments that are a lifeline for rural communities here in Oregon and across America.
Sep 30, 2026
China’s campaign of repression and human rights abuses continues to have horrific consequences, including reports of forced organ harvesting from vulnerable groups across the PRC. We must stand up for the victims of these crimes, and our…
Oct 1, 2026
Immigration court proceedings must uphold fairness and rule of law and not be politicized to satisfy Donald Trump’s arbitrary detention quotas.
Oct 8, 2026
Every Oregon community needs the resources to keep young people safe, support children who have experienced abuse and neglect, and build stronger relationships between families and those who serve them.





