Friend,

In the heart of our country, agriculture plays a key role in the economy and the lives of millions of Americans and their communities. It is also subject to the influence of big money: In an increasingly concentrated agriculture industry, the family farmer faces an uphill battle against lower prices for crops and higher costs for production. 

The problem of big money in politics is one reason why Alan LaPolice decided to pursue a seat in Congress and join the American Promise movement for the 28th Amendment. A fifth-generation Kansan, Alan has experience as a farmer, educator and military veteran. As he shared during a recent conversation with us, his bid for public office was motivated by the problems that concentrated power—like big corporations in agriculture and big money in politics—creates for everyday Americans.

“As power is concentrated in the hands of a few, everybody on the bottom or in the middle of that spectrum—they lose,” Alan says. “Until money comes out of politics, the things that everyday voters want done won’t get done. If we want to restore any form of a government by, of and for the people, the most important thing we can do is turn off that flow.”

Let’s work together for the 28th Amendment to turn off the flow of big money and grow a representative government.

From USA Today: The Supreme Court ruled this week against the Republican-controlled Virginia House of Delegates, spurning the GOP’s defense of election maps drawn with racial and partisan overtones. The decision means legislative districts in Virginia that the Supreme Court previously said were racially gerrymandered have to remain in their redrawn form for this fall’s elections, when all 140 seats in the Legislature are on the ballot. The districts have faced legal challenges since they were drawn in 2011. But the Supreme Court did not address the threshold issue: whether the maps followed or violated the Voting Rights Act, which says minorities must be given a chance to elect lawmakers of their choice. Read more.

From the Oregonian: Voter-approved campaign finance limits for Portland elections recently were struck down by a county judge who said they violate free expression rights in the state’s constitution. The decision by Judge Eric J. Bloch mirrors one he issued in March 2018, citing a 1997 Oregon Supreme Court decision. Portland voters approved the campaign finance changes in November 2018 with an 87 percent “yes” vote. Read more.

From the Center for Responsive Politics: Since leaving office at the end of 2018, nearly two dozen former members of Congress have found jobs at lobbying firms. Only two of the 23 had registered to lobby as of May 30 as required by the Lobbying Disclosure Act. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, former House members are supposed to wait one year before lobbying their chamber’s ex-colleagues but enforcement of the LDA has been minimal with only nine actions taken since 1995. Read more. 

From the Denver Post: This year’s city elections attracted more than $1 million from wealthy donors and political groups spent through independent organizations that don’t have to disclose as much donor information as political action committees. Outside spending is mutating faster than the city can keep pace and threatens to undermine the campaign finance reforms that Denver voters recently approved. Read more.

From Teen Vogue: Communities across the United States are celebrating Juneteenth. The holiday marks the emancipation of slaves in Galveston, Texas, on June 19, 1865—more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation—and highlights the resilience, solidarity, achievements and culture of the black community. Read more.

June 30, Peterborough, NH: American Promise President Jeff Clements will be the first in a series of weekly speakers in the Monadnock Summer Lyceum at Peterborough Unitarian Universalist Church. His presentation, “Equal Citizens or Oligarchy: New Hampshire and the Cross-partisan Movement for the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution” runs from 11 a.m. to noon and will be rebroadcast at 11 a.m. on WSMN 1590 AM on the following Sunday, and on WUML 91.5 FM the following Wednesday. Learn more.