Democratic U.S. Rep. Jim Moran, who represents the 8th District of Virginia, issued the following statement on the Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission.

“Today’s Supreme Court decision represents a monumental step backwards for American democracy and will allow corporations to drown out the voices of average Americans. The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn precedent and allow corporations to spend unrestricted resources on political activities will undermine people’s confidence that the government is acting in their best interest on issues such as the economy, health care and energy policy.

“Under current campaign finance law, corporations have the ability to influence the political process through regulated political action committees (PACs). Now, these PACs will be able to funnel all of their resources into direct donations to individual candidates, letting the corporation itself fund advertising out of general funds. The boundary between commerce and corporate advocacy has been decimated and consumers will be funding the political agenda of corporations-whether they like it or not.

“We must find ways to limit special interest money in our political process. That’s why I support the Fair Elections Now Act, which will provide matching federal funds for candidates that only accept donations of less than $100, allowing them to compete on a level footing with special interest-funded candidates. I look forward to working with my colleagues in Congress to pass measures to mitigate the impact of this decision and restore the people’s confidence in the American system.”