Benjamin Todd Jealous Quotes

The democratic process is supposed to be one person one vote, but it turns out that money is talking louder than the votes.

Do the elected officials in Washington stand with ordinary Americans - working families, children, the elderly, the poor - or will the extraordinary power of billionaire campaign contributors and Big Money prevail? The American people, by the millions, must send Congress the answer to that question.

If we, as individuals, want to keep control of our democracy - rather than have a government paid for by corporate interest checks - then we have to fight back now and make sure our system reflects the belief that people, not corporations, control our democracy.

In our political system, money is power. And that means a few can have a lot more power than the rest. That's bad news for everyone else - and for our democracy itself.

The political battle is between big money combines who spend a thousand pounds or more on every constituency they fight… when they speak democracy, they don't mean government by the people...they mean financial democracy, in which money counts and nothing but money.

Money distorts the democratic process in a fundamental way.

When somebody contributes to a campaign, that is democracy at work.

Voting is the first duty of democracy.

We must demonstrate our power by exercising our right to vote.

The dollar votes more times than the man.

In a democracy, in a functioning democracy, what would be happening is that popular organizations, unions, political groupings, others would be developing their programs, putting them forth, insisting that their representatives implement those programs.

Let's face it, politics in this country is coin-operated. Does that really equate to a real democracy? It's very difficult to say.

I never miss a vote; I think that's the power of the people. A lot of people fought and died for us to have votes, for women to have votes in particular - your vote is your one weapon.

The government must give men and women without power a real say over what happens to them, and the means of engaging in a participative, invigorated and living democracy.

I think that's most unfortunate about our Democratic system, that you're confining it to people who are either very wealthy in their own right or have capacity to gain access to large amounts of money.

Power is action; the electoral principle is discussion. No political action is possible when discussion is permanently established.

I don't really like politics, to be honest. But it's other people making decisions about my life and my country and my child's education... I wish we didn't have so much money in politics, but that's not the world we live in. If we don't play here, we forfeit. And I'm not willing to forfeit my rights.

I acknowledged that I owed my presidency to People Power. I resolved during my presidency that I would in turn empower the people.

Power in politics, sovereignty in America is with we the people, and that is the path to turning this country around: empowering the people.

I'm the one who initiated the democratic process.

The most powerful thing we own is our vote.

People who don't vote have no line of credit with people who are elected and thus pose no threat to those who act against our interests.

What's the point of elections if everything is already decided?

People who want to understand democracy should spend less time in the library with Aristotle and more time on the buses and in the subway.

Big corporations have money and power to make sure every rule breaks their way; people have voices and votes to push back.