Pelosi Remarks at Press Event Unveiling ‘Government by the People Act’

Contact: Drew Hammill, 202-226-7616

Washington, D.C. – House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi joined Congressman John Sarbanes and Members of Congress today for a press event unveiling the "Government by the People Act," a bipartisan bill to reduce the influence of big money in politics and provide key reforms to our nation's campaign finance laws, which was introduced today. Below are the Leader's opening and closing remarks:

Leader Pelosi's Opening Remarks

"Good morning everyone, and a good morning it is. I feel so exhilarated about the legislation that has been introduced on behalf of the American people. I want to congratulate Congressman John Sarbanes for developing this legislation: the ‘Government by the People Act.' Doesn't that sound wonderful?

[Applause]

"I'm so pleased to be here with John Larson. He's really been the shepherd of this whole effort of campaign reform, for all the elements of our DARE over the years. Thank you, John Larson, for your great leadership.

[Applause]

"We're all in your debt. And I'm pleased to be here – Mr. Sarbanes will announce the number of cosponsors on his legislation – but I'm honored to be here with: the leadership of the Progressive Caucus, Congressman Keith Ellison, whom we'll be hearing from; a champion of campaign reform in her home state of Maine and in the Congress and in the country, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree; a Representative of the freshman class, and again, effective from the start on this issue, Congressman Beto O'Rourke from Texas. We're delighted that Ann Kuster of New Hampshire is with us as well, and a person who has been a steady hand on all of this for a very long time, John Yarmuth of Kentucky.

[Applause]

"Four years ago, in January, the Citizens United decision of the Supreme Court shook the very foundation of our democracy: the principle that in the United States of America, it is the voices of the people – we believe that's our foundation – that it's the voices of the people that determine the outcome of our elections, not the bank accounts of the privileged few. They reversed that.

"Since that decision, which opened the floodgates to millions of millions of dollars of secret spending on elections, we have seen how the tidal wave of unlimited, unidentified money has distorted our electoral process. It has suffocated the airwaves – undisclosed, secret special interest money suffocating the airwaves, a deterrent to voter participation. And now we have seen how the special interests have worked to drown out the public interest.

"So I have issued a DARE, and many of you have heard it over and over again. We must: Disclose – Chris Van Hollen has been a leader on this – the sources of the money in our campaigns; we must Amend the constitution to reverse the grievous error of the Citizens United decision – we must reverse that decision…

[Applause]

"…we must Reform our broken campaign finance system – and that's what we're here to talk about today; and we must Empower citizens everywhere to exercise their right to vote.

"Today, we are proud to be announcing the introduction of the reform part of that DARE: the ‘Government by the People Act.' In doing so, we honor the vows of our Founders. They were willing to sacrifice their lives, their liberty, their sacred honor for a democracy – a government of the many, not a government of the money. In passing this legislation, we can restore confidence in the democracy and honor the vows of our Founders.

"And now it is my privilege to yield to the distinguished gentleman from Maryland, who has been relentless, persistent, dissatisfied, endlessly hardworking and smart-thinking, honoring the vows of our Founders: John Sarbanes.

[Applause]

Leader Pelosi's Closing Remarks

"Thank you to all of my colleagues for your commitment to honoring the vows of our founders. Earlier this morning I was soaring with the eagles – that's what we call it when you go to a 7:30 a.m. breakfast to talk about issues.

[Laughter]

"I was soaring with the eagles with UAW. And I said, Walter Reuther once said that the bread box and the ballot box cannot be separated. What happens at the ballot box has an impact on the lives of people. And that's attesting to what you said, my colleague, Mr. Ellison, but also to the fact that people's confidence, as Mr. Sarbanes said, is shaken by what they see now. And their confidence in our democracy is essential.

"So again, you can't do it just by inside maneuvering. The outside mobilization is absolutely essential to success. So, thank you to the groups that are here, the individuals who are on board, for what you are doing to spread the word, to cause a drumbeat across America. And John Sarbanes, John Larson, all the others who are here – they're our Paul Reveres. Because of their courage, they're getting out there. The fate of the nation is riding on them. So you've got to help them whip that horse and get this job done: our Paul Reveres.

[Laughter]

"Because I do believe that the nation as our Founders courageously established it, the tradition that we have had in our country, is greatly eroded, corroded – whatever the word is – by what the Supreme Court did. We can counter that with the ‘Government by the People Act.' Thank you, John Sarbanes."

[Applause]

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