My 2021 Democracy Day Testimony to Shaker Heights City Council: The “Red Box” Lays Bare the Corruption of American Democracy

Every two years since Shaker Heights passed its Move to Amend initiative in 2016, the city council has hosted a mandated “Democracy Day,” where citizens give testimony on how corporate money in politics corrupts and interferes with American democracy. My politics have changed a bit since 2015, when I helped get this initiative on the ballot (I now call myself a socialist), but I still think it’s a worthwhile cause and a good opportunity to highlight some of the most salient examples of corporate rule. I decided to focus on Shontel Brown’s 2021 congressional campaign and its tactic of using a “Red Box” to communicate with Super PACs. One important point I couldn’t fit into the four minute speech is that using the Red Box is likely illegal according to a Yale Law Journal article from May 2021.

Below is the text of my testimony for Shaker Heights Democracy Day 2021, with links from The New York Times and The Intercept added.

—

Today I’m going to talk about how an innovation in electioneering called the “Red Box” makes a mockery of American democracy, highlighting the need for fundamental changes. This is a timely issue for Shaker Heights because our future congresswoman Shontel Brown made effective use of the Red Box in the recent primary election.

The majority opinion in Citizens United was authored by Justice Anthony Kennedy, who reasoned that, while the corrupting influence of money is a valid concern, we can put that concern to rest simply by limiting the amount of money that can be contributed to “political action committees” (called “PACs”) that directly coordinate with political campaigns. On the other hand, there needn’t be any limitations on contributions to another type of PAC called “Super PACs” that don’t directly coordinate with campaigns, because how could there be corruption if there’s no communication?

Of course, activists immediately saw that even completely independent expenditures would corrupt the system if there were no contribution limits. Activists have been very vocal about the fact that there are forms of corruption other than the blatant quid pro quo bribery that Justice Kennedy was concerned about.

Still, it’s worth considering what Justice Kennedy was saying here, because he was speaking for the Supreme Court and setting the law of the land. What he was saying was that it would in fact corrupt American democracy if these Super PACs were to communicate with campaigns, including if they were to receive guidance from campaigns about how exactly the Super PAC should use their unlimited corporate funding to support the campaign.

Enter the “Red Box.”

I learned about the Red Box in May 2021 when it was reported that Shontel Brown’s campaign for congress was using the technique, but political campaigns have been employing it for years to communicate with Super PACs. How does this work? Here’s how Shontel Brown’s campaign did it. On the campaign website, there were quotes from the heads of three Super PACs. Next to the quotes, there was a red rectangle. And inside this literal “red box” was a link to a document with information directing the Super PACs, or anyone else, on how to support the campaign. The Super PACs, funded in large part by people connected to the fossil fuel industry, spent $2 million to amplify the messaging suggested in the Red Box. Shontel Brown came from behind to win the election.

This simple workaround of the Super PAC restrictions set by Citizens United produces precisely what Justice Kennedy hoped to avoid: Unlimited corporate funding and spending guided by political campaigns. In other words, the Red Box lays bare exactly what activists have been saying for years: corporate money corrupts American democracy. There’s no way around it. It will continue to do so until there are some fundamental changes.

Thank you, and thanks to the hosts of Democracy Day for the opportunity to speak here today.