A recent report in the New York Times stated that it appears that the United States Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Roberts is under the sway of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce when it comes to business interests. One court supporter went so far as to say it was a response against business regulation through litigation.
Well with conservatives against regulation by congress and now the courts what avenue is there to check the power of corporations that now have more rights than the American people thanks to the Citizens United case ruled on by the high court affording free speech rights to corporate entities while over turning 100 years of case law in a ham fisted fit of judicial activism or legislating from the bench by the conservative block.
Well with other regulatory processes now out of reach the only option left is for Congress to legislate an Omnibus Corporate Democracy Act. This law should have bipartisan support since all Americans are in favor of spreading democracy to totalitarian states as well as corporations.
The plan would be to provide for the public election of electors who would serve as voting but non profit taking shareholders in all corporations. They would be in effect non-governmental regulators working inside corporations with regular shareholders who would influence corporate policy away from say defective products, pollution, consumer fraud, thievery and political decisions in corporate governance.
All corporations regardless of size would have these electors who would be provided with weighted voting power. Electors would serve set terms facing the voters every four years. They would be an independent non-governmental body of elected officials chosen for their business and consumer rights knowledge all devoted to protecting the rights of all Americans under the Constitution. They would be required to be part of any corporation operating in the U.S.
This way electors could vote out bad corporate executives and board members bringing democracy to the board room for the first time in history. Think of the positive effect this would have on ousting corporate leaders more interested in lining their pockets than bringing in fair profits to shareholders.
After the financial debacle of 2008 capitalism is a little frayed and out of step with modern life and in need of an upgrade or make over like what corporate democracy and its elector shareholders would bring to the table.
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