User:Collieca/sandbox

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The Effects of Stephen Colbert’s Super PAC on The Public Sphere[edit | edit source]

PACs, What Are They?[edit | edit source]

Essentially, Political Action Committees (PACs) are groups that donate money to a campaign or candidate who will favor their opinion in certain issues. They came into being because of the Tillman Act, and the Taft-Hartley Act; both of which were designed to prohibit corporate and labor union contributions to political elections. Basically, PACs were formed to bypass the system and allow corporations and other groups to funnel money to anyone they wanted to. In 1971, Congress passed the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) to limit campaign contributions. The same bill also set up the Federal Election Commission (FEC) whose purpose is to administer federal campaign finance laws. There are different variations of PACs: Connected, Unconnected, Leadership, and Super. Each of them is slightly different than the others. But the main issue is the difference between the others and Super PACs.


What is The Difference Between a PAC And a Super PAC?[edit | edit source]

In 2010 the Supreme Court ruled on the case of Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission. They found that it was unconstitutional to prohibit corporate and union entities from spending money on political matters. Also in 2010, there was a ruling by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that allowed groups not donating to an official, or their campaign, to accept a donation of any size.

With the rulings of these two cases the creation of Super PACs became legal. While they operate like a normal PAC there are a very few noticeable and important differences. They may solicit an unlimited amount of money from anyone, and spend it in almost any way they see fit; the exception being that they may not donate directly to candidate’s campaigns or political parties. The kicker is that to become a Super PAC, all that has to be done is filling out one additional sheet of paperwork.


Why is This a Problem?[edit | edit source]

The real question is “why is this legal?” It is a blatant disregard of democracy. Many elections are already decided by who spends the most. It is literally impossible to find a presidential election where the winner wasn’t the man who spent the most money on campaigning. I will quote what the Center for Responsive Politics said about the 2008 election, “In 93 percent of House of Representatives races and 94 percent of Senate races that had been decided by mid-day Nov. 5, the candidate who spent the most money ended up winning.” And we all know that Barack Obama won the presidency; it happens to be the case that he also spent more than his opponent, John McCain. This essentially equates money to power. Quoting Stephen Colbert, “This is one-hundred percent legal, and at least ten percent ethical.”


History of Colbert’s Super PAC[edit | edit source]

On July 1st , 2011 the FEC approved Stephen Colbert’s request for a Super PAC —Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow — which he proceeded to announce to the public along with a request for donations. Assisting him throughout the process was Trevor Potter, who is still Colbert’s lawyer. Who also assisted him in setting up a 501 (c)(4) under the name of Colbert Super PAC SHH Institute. The 501(c)(4) is a social welfare organization capable of spending money on political issues. And as Colbert pointed out, his 501(c)(4) may take any amount of money and not have to reveal the donor; it can then donate that money to his Super PAC where it will be shown as being donated from his 501(c)(4). This means that anyone could give any amount and nobody would ever be able to find out who it was. Colbert sums it up well when he asks Potter, “What is the difference between this and money laundering?” Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow ran four ads while Colbert was initially in control of it. The first two were attempts to persuade Iowan residents to write in Rick Parry in lieu of Rick Perry. The third and fourth were related to the NBA lockout incident.


  1. Episode 4: A New Hope
  2. Behind the Green Corn
  3. Foul Balls
  4. Ball Gags


Colbert eventually decided that he wanted to attempt a presidential run, starting in South Carolina, and so he handed control of his Super PAC over to his close friend and business associate Jon Stewart. Stewart, now in control of the Super PAC, was required by law not to coordinate with Stephen in any way. The penalty for doing so is incarceration and/or a fine, which is payable with Super PAC funds. When Stewart took over the Super PAC the name became: The Definitely Not Coordinating with Stephen Colbert Super PAC. While he was running the Super PAC he continued to run ads, primarily in South Carolina. The first was an attack ad aimed at Mitt Romney, and equating him to a murderer. The second was to support Herman Cain, and basically said that a vote for Cain was a vote for Colbert; as Stephen could not get onto the ballot in South Carolina. The third was an ironic threat of using negative attack ads to end negative attack ads. The fourth is an attack ad for Colbert; it was meant to show that he was not coordinating with the Definitely Not Coordinating with Stephen Colbert Super PAC.


  1. Attack in B Minor for Strings
  2. Herman Cain
  3. Double Negative
  4. Modern Stage Combat


Colbert and Stewart soon performed skits in which they poked fun at how simple it was for candidates to “not coordinate in any way” with a Super PAC. Bringing up points such as how it was possible for Stewart to hire Colbert’s former Super PAC staff, but only as long as they didn’t know what Colbert was doing. Another relevant point that was no less subtle was Trevor Potter being the legal counsel for both the exploratory committee and the Super PAC. In addition, they found that it was possible for the Super PAC to tell the candidate exactly what it was doing so long as the candidate didn’t advise or coordinate with them; it is also possible for the candidate to speak to the public, and if those in charge of the Super PAC happen to “accidentally” hear his plans that’s too bad. All of this, of course, is legal.

After ending his presidential run due to not being able to get on the ballot Colbert proceeded to take back his Super PAC and continue on his way. And recently Colbert released what he is calling the “Colbert Super PAC Super Fun Pack.” Which is a product geared towards college students, but it can be enjoyed by those of all ages. It is meant to guide the user through the process of creating their own Political Action Committee. It contains: all the legal documents necessary for creating a Super PAC, an instructional booklet by Trevor Potter to guide users along the way, an Allen wrench, official Colbert Super PAC T-shirt, dorm room door sign, official Colbert Super PAC tube socks, a list of the four-hundred richest Americans, and an authentic treasure map.

Now most of these items make sense, but a treasure map? It’s all part of Colbert’s newest promotion for his Super PAC. Whoever deciphers the treasure map first and claims the treasure gets a fantastic prize; a one-hundred year old silver turtle that also functions as a service bell. Oh, and Colbert will visit the campus of whoever wins. But that’s not important; what is important is that the turtle does not like peanut butter.


Effects of Colbert’s Super PAC on The Public Sphere[edit | edit source]

Stephen Colbert has done more than anyone else to show the general public just how Political Action Committees work, and what it is they actually do. Was it a satirical joke poking fun at the system, and meant to get ratings? It probably was. Did Colbert send a real message to those who were listening? Yes, absolutely. Colbert’s call to action did not go unheeded; there are already examples of students taking his message to heart. And as Colbert said, “"We are divided between those who think with their heads and those who know with their heart.”

One such group is the Penn Staters for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow; who define themselves as, “The Penn State chapter of Stephen Colbert's Super PAC: Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow.” Their mission is, “To make our voices heard in the form of Stephen Colbert's voice and draw attention to the bipartisan issue of Super PACs and money in politics.” Another such group is Texans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow. It is a branch of Colbert’s Super PAC; started by Paul Benefiel, who is a sophomore in the University of Texas, with Colbert’s permission. It is only logical to assume that this trend will continue, and lead to more public involvement in issues like Super PACs and campaign finance; because the public, unlike Super PACs and candidates, can coordinate.


References[edit | edit source]

  • 2010, January, and the federal government required disclosure. "Political action committee - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 2 May 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superpac#Super_PACs>.
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