Pros And Cons Of The Disclosure Act Of 2010

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The Disclose Act of 2010, was one of the most polarizing pieces of legislation to be debated during the 111th Congress controlled by Democrats. Regardless of its polarizing nature, the act was able to pass the House, where it then was halted in the Senate due to the filibuster. The failure to pass S.3628 the Disclosure Act of 2010 in the Senate displays how much polarization can inhibit Congress, as well as the severity of the institutional frameworks that protect minority parties in the Senate. The Disclose Act of 2010 were pieces of legislation introduced by Democrats into both the House and Senate after the decision of Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission 558 U.S. 310, which ruled that “under the First Amendment corporate funding …show more content…

At the time of this resolution Democrats controlled the House 257 to 178(U.S House of Representatives): meaning that Democrats also controlled the rules committee (Sinclair 24). This control allows them to determine what amendments make it to the floor, and prohibit any amendments that delay or shift focus away from the legislation. This tactic of using the rules strategically for political gain was first coined by Democrats in the 1980s (Sinclair 32). Before coming to a vote the House agreed on amendments from Representatives Ackerman (D-NY-5), Kucinich (D-OH-10), Pascrell (D-NJ-8), and Murphy(D-PA-8): amendments strategically all introduced by Democrats. Of these three none offered substantive change to the bill. Instead, these were only technical amendments that altered phrasing of the legislation. Finally after agreeing on amendments the House put the Bill to a vote, and it passed 219 yeas to 206 naes. Of the yas only two Republican House members voted in favor of the bill, and these were only the two sponsoring the bill, therefore making it quite partisan. Yet, there were also 35 Democrats who opposed the legislation. Among them were even 3 cosponsors of the bill Maxine Waters(D-CA-35) Donna Edwards (D-MD-4), Carolyn McCarthy, (D-NY-4), and Yvette Clarke

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