Senator
Michael
Bennet

“Over the past 10 years, the forces of money in politics, partisan gerrymandering, and voter suppression have combined to separate the American people from their government. Until we fix our broken politics, we will keep struggling to make progress on the issues Americans care most about — from health care to climate change to gun violence. On my first day as president, I will prioritize getting money out of politics and bringing the American people back in. Thank you to End Citizens United and its members nationwide who are fighting on the front lines to restore our democracy to the people. I’m honored to be with you in this fight.”

Leading by Example:

• Rejects contributions from corporate PACs
• Rejects contributions from federal lobbyists
• Rejects contributions from the fossil fuel industry

Policy Positions:

• Supports overturning the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision
• Supports requiring dark money groups to disclose their donors
• Supports small-donor public financing programs
• Supports requiring ad spending disclosure on social media platforms
• Supports banning former members of Congress from becoming lobbyists

Background on Reform:

Announcing his campaign for president, Sen. Bennet said, “You can’t fix a broken Washington if you don’t level with the American people. It’s time for a new era of progress to reform our political system.”

He has released a comprehensive plan aimed at “fighting… corruption and strengthening our democracy.” He would overturn Citizens United, create a small-donor public financing program for federal elections, ban members of Congress from becoming lobbyists, increase disclosure of dark money groups, and require social media companies to provide more information about political ads on their platforms.

In Congress, Sen. Bennet has authored, co-sponsored, and voted for legislation to improve transparency and restore ethics and accountability in Washington. In 2019, Sen. Bennet co-sponsored For the People Act, comprehensive reform legislation introduced in the current Congress. He cosponsored the DISCLOSE Act, legislation that would bring dark money into the light by requiring politically-active nonprofit groups to disclose their donors. He has also cosponsored the Democracy for All Amendment, a constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. FEC decision and voted to pass it in 2014. In 2015, he introduced legislation to reduce the influence of lobbyists in Washington. His bill would ban members of Congress from soliciting contributions from lobbyists, end the practice of lobbyists “bundling” for candidates, and place a lifetime ban on former members of Congress from becoming lobbyists.

“The unlimited, unchecked and anonymous spending has paralyzed Congress… It has been unable to tackle the big issues, whether it is reforming the tax code, updating our energy policy or fixing our immigration system.” — Sen. Michael Bennet