Opinion: A new Arizona law was written to surgically target major donors who fund campaign ads. And for good reason.
By Terry Goddard and David Tedesco opinion contributors
Arizona voters want a fuller picture of who is funding campaign ads.
The “dark money” apologists are at it once again.
They have been relentlessly attacking Proposition 211, and this attack on our new transparency statute comes in an op-ed in The Arizona Republic (“Why disclosing ‘dark money’ donations actually hurts your freedom of speech”) claiming that disclosure “actually hurts your freedom of speech.”
Arizona voters disagree. Seventy-two percent of the vote in November affirmed the belief that disclosure of the original source of money spent on political campaign ads actually enhances the right to vote.
Obviously, a win of this size means that Arizonans of all parties and political beliefs support disclosing the real sponsor behind campaign ads. The new Arizona statute ensures that voters aren’t deceived any longer by special interests hiding behind front groups.
New law targets spending on campaign ads
Dark money effectively separated the actual source of the cash paying for political campaign ads from any responsibility for what the ad said. When lies and deception are spoken without proper attribution, responsible behavior and accountability fly out the window.
