Investors have always had some interest in the amounts corporations spend on political activities; but with the dramatic increase resulting from the 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United, many large investors are increasingly pressing for detailed disclosures. They want to be able to determine whether the spending is properly aligned with the company’s stated strategy. They want to know that the spending is, in the words of the official who manages the New York City pension funds, not simply to promote “the personal political preferences of a particular executive with access to the corporate purse strings.” The SEC proposed a rule in 2012 that would require clear disclosures; despite the majority support found in the 1,200,000 comment letters, no rule followed. Under pressure from politicians, in 2013 the SEC chair assured Congress that no rule would be forthcoming; in the federal budget enacted in December 2015, the SEC was prohibited from expending its resources on such a rule. About half the S&P 500 companies offer voluntary disclosure, but it is limited and inconsistent. In 2019, the 250 largest U.S. corporations faced 14 shareholder proposals to disclose political spending. Although none passed, the average level of support was 37 percent (up from 23 percent in 2010).

Question 

Does political spending by large corporations pose a problem for democracy? Explain.