The original content of Democracy Now! Headlines appears under the Creative
Commons BY-NC-ND 3.0 License (United States). For more, including their other
shows and media, visit www.democracynow.org.
December 11, 2012

In Reversal, Obama to Accept Corporate Funds for Inauguration 
--------------------------------------------------------------


 
President Obama is under criticism for agreeing to accept corporate
funding for his second-term inauguration next month. The New York Times
reports donors have been offered a number of sponsorship options
including the top tier of $1 million for institutions and $250,000 for
individuals. The plan differs from Obama's 2009 inauguration, when
corporate, lobbyist and political action committee donors were banned
and individual contributions were capped at $50,000. It also follows the
Democratic National Committee's move this summer to renege on a vow to
stage its convention in Charlotte without corporate donors. Ironically,
Obama's corporate-sponsored inauguration will take place on January 21st
— the two-year anniversary of the Citizens United ruling allowing
unlimited outside spending on political campaigns. Criticizing the move,
the transparency watchdog the Sunlight Foundation said: "[President]
Obama said unlimited donations sully our democracy, threaten public
service, and weaken representation — and he has now chosen to
embrace them."

 

.