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Taking Back Obama’s Secret Award for “Transparency”; Amending the Constitution to Fix ‘Citizens United’ Decision

[audio http://peterbcollins.com/podcast/PBC_20110614p263.mp3]

Activists Needed!! Coleen Rowley, former FBI agent and whistleblower, talks about the new campaign to rescind the undeserved award, given to Obama in secret, for “transparency”;  Dr. Rick Staggenborg, former US Senate candidate from Oregon, talks up efforts to amend the Constitution follwoing the Supreme Court’s bad decision in Citizens United.

Rowley was part of the unsuccessful effort to alert FBI HQ in Washington before 9/11 about Moussaoui, the alleged “2oth hijacker”; she was named TIME’s Person of the Year, and ran for Congress in Minnesota.  Rowley and Sibel Edmonds have written a petition asking 5 nonprofit groups that foster open government to rescind the award they gave to Obama on March 28, 2011–which the White House has kept virtually secret.  Rowley details the reasons why Obama is the worst recent president on transparency.  We also talk about the Pentagon Papers on the 40th anniversary of their release, the expansion of FBI powers in the newly revised investigations manual, the plan to extend FBI Director Mueller’s term, and the plea bargain of NSA whistleblower Thomas Drake.  You can read and sign the petition here.

At 41:08, Dr. Rick Staggenborg of Coos Bay, OR returns to talk about amending the Constitution to correct the Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United. We discuss the hurdles to amending, whether via a constitutional convention or acts of Congress, the need to address the original campaign finance case, Buckley v. Valeo as well as Citizens United, and the bipartisan appeal of efforts to limit corporate power and personhood.  Even if the effort to amend falls short, this is a defining issue that can animate campaigns and force candidates to choose between people and corporations.  Read and sign the petition here.