--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance…" description: "\"Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance system are destroying American democracy. We're proud that we have received four million individual contribut..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e17/bernie-sanders-233_american-democracy_super-pacs-and-a-corrupt-campaign-financ_784076.jpg" --- # Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance system are… ![“Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance system are destroying American democracy. We're proud that we have received four million individual contributions, more than any candidate in American history at this point.” quote by Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e17/bernie-sanders-233_american-democracy_super-pacs-and-a-corrupt-campaign-financ_784076.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e17/bernie-sanders-233_american-democracy_super-pacs-and-a-corrupt-campaign-financ_784076.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e17/bernie-sanders-233_american-democracy_super-pacs-and-a-corrupt-campaign-financ_784076.jpg) > “Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance system are destroying American democracy. We're proud that we have received four million individual contributions, more than any candidate in American history at this point.” [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Campaign finance corruption undermines democracy; massive small donations highlight systemic issues and need for reform. **In simple terms:** Money in politics erodes democratic fairness. Key Takeaway Advocate for transparent, equitable campaign funding. Themes politics democracy money reform activism Mood urgent concerned Type political activist When to use this quote - voter education - policy advocacy - fundraising reform - public debates Key Concepts campaign finance corruption grassroots mobilization Questions to Reflect On - What reforms could reduce money’s influence? - How can citizens pressure legislators? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched interests is difficult; reforms face strong opposition. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [American democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-democracy/) [American history](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-history/) [Campaign finance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaign-finance/) [Campaigns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/campaigns/) [Candidates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/candidates/) [Contribution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/contribution/) [Corrupt Campaign](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corrupt-campaign-4848229/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Destroying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destroying/) [Finance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/finance/) [Four](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/four/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Millions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/millions/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Pacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pacs/) [Pacs Corrupt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pacs-corrupt-5290440/) [Proud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/proud/) [Super Pacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/super-pacs-308578/) ## Related quotes > [The reality is we that have a corrupt campaign finance system which separates the American people's needs and desires from what Congress is doing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-reality-is-we-that-have-a-corrupt-campaign-finance-system-which/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [There's issue of a corrupt campaign finance system, where big money interests and Wall Street are trying to buy elections.Those are the issues that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/there-s-issue-of-a-corrupt-campaign-finance-system-where-big-money/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [PACs corrupt the system. They handle vast amounts of money and the money corrupts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/pacs-corrupt-the-system-they-handle-vast-amounts-of-money-and-the/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [There is no evidence that super PACs have led to a greater percentage of negative ads.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-a-smith/there-is-no-evidence-that-super-pacs-have-led-to-a-greater-percentage/) [Bradley A. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-a-smith/) > [I would do away with super PACs. I think it's a cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/i-would-do-away-with-super-pacs-i-think-it-s-a-cancer/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [I think there's a lot of reasons for having an extended primary. I think super PACs play a role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reince-priebus/i-think-there-s-a-lot-of-reasons-for-having-an-extended-primary-i/) [Reince Priebus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reince-priebus/) > [To all the worryworts out there who said super PACs were going to lead to a cabal of billionaires secretly buying democracy: wrong! They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/to-all-the-worryworts-out-there-who-said-super-pacs-were-going-to/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [For many years, we have had these campaign finance reforms, and they have been failures. Money is more coursing through our system than ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-shields/for-many-years-we-have-had-these-campaign-finance-reforms-and-they/) [Mark Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-shields/) > [The billionaires and their super PACs increasingly control the American political process. This is not democracy. This is not what brave Americans fought and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-billionaires-and-their-super-pacs-increasingly-control-the/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I am very proud to be the only candidate up here who does not have a Super PAC, who's not raising huge sums of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-am-very-proud-to-be-the-only-candidate-up-here-who-does-not-have-a/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I think what you've got are millions of people who are in trouble today. They really are. They're confused. They're working longer hours for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-think-what-you-ve-got-are-millions-of-people-who-are-in-trouble/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [Goldman Sachs was one of those companies whose illegal activity helped destroy our economy and ruin the lives of millions of Americans. But this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/goldman-sachs-was-one-of-those-companies-whose-illegal-activity/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [Most Republicans are not prepared to stand up to the fossil fuel industry because they get a lot of their campaign funds from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/most-republicans-are-not-prepared-to-stand-up-to-the-fossil-fuel/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I think we need to take on the greed of the billionaire class, a disastrous campaign finance system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-think-we-need-to-take-on-the-greed-of-the-billionaire-class-a/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [As a result of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, American democracy is being undermined by the ability of the Koch brothers and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/as-a-result-of-the-citizens-united-supreme-court-decision-american/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) ## More by Bernie Sanders > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. These great lovers of America who made their money in this country-when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-rich-people-are-apparently-leaving-america-they-re-giving-up/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [As the longest serving Independent in the history of the United States Congress, as somebody who came into office by defeating an incumbent Democratic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/as-the-longest-serving-independent-in-the-history-of-the-united/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [What Wall Street and credit card companies are doing is really not much different from what gangsters and loan sharks do who make predatory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/what-wall-street-and-credit-card-companies-are-doing-is-really-not/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [What we have got to do immediately is to say that racism and xenophobia is totally unacceptable and we will stand with the 1…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/what-we-have-got-to-do-immediately-is-to-say-that-racism-and/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [In 1999, Hoffmann-LaRoche paid a $500 million criminal fine for leading a worldwide conspiracy to fix prices for certain vitamins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/in-1999-hoffmann-laroche-paid-a-500-million-criminal-fine-for-leading/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [We need a strategy. And the goal is to bring millions of people together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/we-need-a-strategy-and-the-goal-is-to-bring-millions-of-people/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [We are living at a time where a handful of people have wealth beyond comprehension - huge yachts, jet planes, tens of billions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/we-are-living-at-a-time-where-a-handful-of-people-have-wealth-beyond/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [The deficit crisis is real and must be addressed. But it cannot be solved on the backs of the weak and vulnerable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-deficit-crisis-is-real-and-must-be-addressed-but-it-cannot-be/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I want to break up the Wall Street banks. Hillary Clinton doesn't. I want to raise the minimum wage to 15 bucks an hour.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-want-to-break-up-the-wall-street-banks-hillary-clinton-doesn-t-i/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [The Palestinian people's needs must be respected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-palestinian-people-s-needs-must-be-respected/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [Hillary Clinton wants to see that all Americans have the right to choose a public option in their health care exchange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/hillary-clinton-wants-to-see-that-all-americans-have-the-right-to/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [If you want to know if your food contains gluten, aspartame, high fructose corn syrup, trans-fats or MSG, you simply read the ingredients listed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/if-you-want-to-know-if-your-food-contains-gluten-aspartame-high/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [It reminds me in some ways of the debate taking place in this country and around the world in the late 1930s. There were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/it-reminds-me-in-some-ways-of-the-debate-taking-place-in-this-country/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [I am sure that there are some single payer advocates who think the only thing worth fighting for is single payer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/i-am-sure-that-there-are-some-single-payer-advocates-who-think-the/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [The case to be made is that we have got to get people involved - continue to get people involved in the political process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/the-case-to-be-made-is-that-we-have-got-to-get-people-involved/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) [Explore all 853 Bernie Sanders quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) ## More American democracy quotes > [ Elvis \[Presley\] had a stepstool, if you will, to success because he came from the dominant culture. They identified with him. Michael Jackson had… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eric-dyson/elvis-presley-had-a-stepstool-if-you-will-to-success-because-he-came/) [Michael Eric Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eric-dyson/) > [That's what separates out American democracy from dictators and horrible governments across the world and the reason why that works is that we have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-chamberlain/that-s-what-separates-out-american-democracy-from-dictators-and/) [Charles R. Chamberlain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-chamberlain/) > [This will be the day when we shall bring into full realization the dream of American democracy -- a dream yet unfulfilled. A dream…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/this-will-be-the-day-when-we-shall-bring-into-full-realization-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [This has all the appearance of a foreign power trying to undermine structures of legitimacy of an American election. That is a serious matter.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gerson/this-has-all-the-appearance-of-a-foreign-power-trying-to-undermine/) [Michael Gerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gerson/) > [Men like Abraham Lincoln recognized that if the slaveholders were not stopped, it would only be a question of time until they spread their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-cox-richardson/men-like-abraham-lincoln-recognized-that-if-the-slaveholders-were-not/) [Heather Cox Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-cox-richardson/) > [These communities that are losing local news coverage are losing something deeper. They're losing a connection to American democracy. And those connections must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-stelter/these-communities-that-are-losing-local-news-coverage-are-losing/) [Brian Stelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-stelter/) > [“Today you go into make a modern recording with all this technology. The bass plays first, then the drums come in later, then they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wynton-marsalis/today-you-go-into-make-a-modern-recording-with-all-this-technology/) [Wynton Marsalis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wynton-marsalis/) > [As a result of the Citizens United Supreme Court decision, American democracy is being undermined by the ability of the Koch brothers and other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-sanders/as-a-result-of-the-citizens-united-supreme-court-decision-american/) [Bernie Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-sanders/) > [If everyone on the Court always voted for the prosecution against the defendant, for the corporation against the plaintiffs, and for the government against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheldon-whitehouse/if-everyone-on-the-court-always-voted-for-the-prosecution-against-the/) [Sheldon Whitehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheldon-whitehouse/) > [Political violence has no place in Pennsylvania - the birthplace of American democracy - nor anywhere else across this country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-shapiro/political-violence-has-no-place-in-pennsylvania-the-birthplace-of/) [Josh Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-shapiro/) > [The atomic weapons race and the secrecy surrounding it crushed American democracy. It induced us to conduct government according to lies. It distorted justice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-udall/the-atomic-weapons-race-and-the-secrecy-surrounding-it-crushed/) [Stewart Udall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-udall/) > [I have no doubt that there are Russian efforts to disturb the fabric of American democracy, but they're disruption efforts. They're troublemaking efforts. They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-have-no-doubt-that-there-are-russian-efforts-to-disturb-the-fabric/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) > [“Still, it strikes me that, taken together, they do make an argument, and it is this: the rise of American democracy is bound up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-lepore/still-it-strikes-me-that-taken-together-they-do-make-an-argument-and/) [Jill Lepore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-lepore/) > [Mr Jefferson meant that the American system should be a democracy, and he would rather have let the whole world perish than that this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/mr-jefferson-meant-that-the-american-system-should-be-a-democracy-and/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [I have no doubt that there are Russian efforts to disturb the fabric of American democracy, but they're disruption efforts. The working theory behind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masha-gessen/i-have-no-doubt-that-there-are-russian-efforts-to-disturb-the-fabric-2/) [Masha Gessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masha-gessen/) [Browse all 168 American democracy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/american-democracy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Super PACs and a corrupt campaign finance system are destroying American democracy. 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