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Also really appreciated the reference to @drodrik.bsky.social’s political trilemma of the world economy. Super useful framework for understanding the constraints of our economic policy space.

According to what I’ve read, the law does apply to corporations incorporated in other states. They have to follow the laws of the states where they do business. The theory will be tested when Hawaii‘s law goes into effect next year!

Last thought: I saw Ben Wikler say we’re defined in the public‘s eyes by the fights we pick. This seema to me like a good fight to pick! Even if it gets struck down. You can find out if someone is trying it in your state here: transparentelection.org/find-your-st... /end

Transparent Election InitiativeSee what's broken in our politics, how The Montana Plan fixes it, and how to bring transparent, accountable, local elections to your state.transparentelection.org

So please read my liece on Liberal Currents and check out some of the links to the legal research that went into what is variously known as The Corporate Power Reset of The Montana Plan. It’s interesting stuff! /9

Will this work? I don’t know! It may very well get struck down by the Supreme Court eventually. But in my piece I advocate for a spaghetti against the wall approach. Might as well put the corporate oligarchs on the defensive, especially when out of power! 8/

Where I live in Montana they call it The Montana Plan to End Dark Money, and it is moving forward as a ballot initiative in November. Hawaii just passed a bill through their state legislature to do the same thing. 6/

So, after the Citizens United ruling some scholars dusted off this legal theory that the states could remove election spending from the list of granted powers 5/

To simplify interstate commerce around the turn of the century states started granting general powers. Made everything much easier! But they never gave up the right to limit corporate powers 4/

States used to grant corporate charters with very limited powers. E.g. to import tea or make striped socks, or, you know, colonize vast subcontinents (ok that’s the East India Company and not relevant here but you get the idea) 3/

The majority in Citizens United held that corporations as artificial persons have 1st amendment rights. Most people think that’s crazy! But an intriguing aside by Alito noted that corporations are subject to the powers given them by state law 2/

You can see if there is A similar initiative in your state here: transparentelection.org/find-your-st...

Transparent Election InitiativeSee what's broken in our politics, how The Montana Plan fixes it, and how to bring transparent, accountable, local elections to your state.transparentelection.org

You can see if a similar initiative is happening in your state here: transparentelection.org/find-your-st...

Transparent Election InitiativeSee what's broken in our politics, how The Montana Plan fixes it, and how to bring transparent, accountable, local elections to your state.transparentelection.org

Full transparency: I collected signatures for the ballot initiative in MT with @transpelectinit.bsky.social. If the idea of banning dark money is exciting to you, you can find out if there is an initiative to do this in your state here: transparentelection.org/find-your-st...

Transparent Election InitiativeSee what's broken in our politics, how The Montana Plan fixes it, and how to bring transparent, accountable, local elections to your state.transparentelection.org

Insomnia in there somewhere! Maybe between Inception and Interstellar.

That’s interesting. You’re probably right. Good stuff to think through.

Hawaii just passed a law removing spending on elections from the powers granted to corporations (or nonprofits). Doesn’t ban speech or lobbying but no election campaigns.

That makes sense. Thanks for the thoughtful reply!

Anyway I could be wrong and I’d love to see a formal model of this! and you should read @interfluidity.com‘s piece in the Reconstruction Papers!

But if domestic goods were not good substitutes for stuff the rest of the world already consumed then the foreign firms would just have to raise prices and we’re back with (admittedly less corrupt) tarrifs 5/n

If domestic goods were easily available, competitively priced, and substitutable with other goods the foreign country already consumed then the efficiency cost would be low and the incidence would I guess fall on foreign producers 4/n