An engaged Alaskan democracy

Alaska Campaign Finance and the US Constitution


Moderator: Bud Carpeneti, retired Chief Justice of the Alaska Supreme Court.

Featured speaker: Jeff Clements, President of American Promise and author of Corporations Are Not People: Reclaiming Democracy From Big Money & Global Corporations.

Discussants:

  • Jon Katchen, former Alaska Assistant AG and currently in private practice in Anchorage with Holland and Hart, responding to criticisms of Citizens United and critiquing the proposed 28th amendment. Presentation slides.
  • Jim Whitaker, former Mayor of Fairbanks North Star Borough and former Representative to the Alaska Legislature, talking about the history of Alaska’s campaign finance law and the dangers of buying elections.
  • Scott Hawkins, Chair of Alaska Wins and President of Advanced Supply Chain International, LLC, talking about why the business community makes independent expenditures and providing a comparative perspective.
  • Sharman Haley, retired Professor of Economics and Public Policy at UAA and activist with Anchorage Move to Amend, talking about the Alaska campaign for a 28th amendment, the We the People Amendment and the need for statutory law to implement it. Presentation Slides.
  • Nancy Heselton, organizer for the Massachusetts ballot initiative creating a Citizen Commission to study the effects of excess money in state politics, talking about her experiences working with citizens in the campaign. 

This event will be livestreamed at this link.