The pernicious influence of money politics has a long history in America, but recent years have seen more spending and less transparency than ever before. Get the latest news about American money politics below and also be sure to visit our main section on American Democracy.
Good Riddance to Senator Romney (9/18/2023) - Utah's political landscape suffered a great misfortune recently as well-tolerated oligarch Mitt Romney announced he… 
Small Donors Are Making Elections More Democratic (5/11/2023) - The growth of small-dollar donations has made races more competitive, as incumbents face challenges from… 
How Megadonors Circumvent Laws To Buy Politicians (5/7/2023) - America's megadonors pump cash into political systems, circumventing finance laws using joint fundraising committees. 
Bipartisan Ban On Stock Trading In Congress Introduced (5/7/2023) - AOC, Gaetz & Fitzpatrick introduced the Restoring Faith in Government Act to ban Congress members… 
Report Details Pentagon-to-Contractor Lobbying (5/2/2023) - 672 former officials worked for top defense contractors, 91% in lobbying roles, as they receive… 
Dark Money Group Plans To Back Hand-Picked Presidential Candidate (4/12/2023) - Laying the groundwork to launch a centrist, third-party “unity” ticket in 2024, the billionaire-funded group… 
How The Supreme Court Could Shape The 2024 Election (11/4/2024) - Dahlia Lithwick has covered the Supreme Court since the landmark Bush v. Gore decision in 2000. 
Making peace visible: the state of democracy in India (12/22/2023) - Increasing government suppression of dissent in India imperils democracy, as critical journalists face escalating risks… 
PODCAST: When Populism And Democracy Collide (11/19/2023) - How can liberal democracies defend themselves against political challenges without undermining their core values? 
I Hereby Censure the Censure (10/2/2023) - It’s time that we censure the whole idea of censure. It’s consuming the precious time… 
Democracy, Education and the Trump Voter (9/1/2023) - For those concerned and willing to move beyond expressions of frustration and contempt for Trump… 
Vietnam Urged To Free Prominent Activist Blogger (4/12/2023) - The Vietnamese authorities should immediately drop all charges and release the well-known blogger Nguyen Lan… 
Election Officials’ Ideas For Stopping A 2024 Crisis (4/12/2023) - The United States of America is preparing for its presidential elections come 2024 and election… 
Europe Needs Stronger Rules For Political Ads (3/30/2023) - Proposed EU regulation will increase public scrutiny of paid political messaging, restrict distribution of political… 
More Effort Is Needed To Open Election Data Globally (2/8/2023) - In more than 20 countries, voter turnout data is unavailable from official sources or the… 
Only 1 In 4 Election Websites Uses The .gov Domain (10/20/2022) - We analyzed a dataset of election websites maintained by CTCL and found that, of the 7,010… 
How To Properly Vet Poll Workers (9/30/2022) - Attention has been paid to rogue election administrators, but election results can also be manipulated… 
November Election Audits, Anyone? (9/15/2022) - Tabloid-style assertions about the 2020 presidential election and its aftermath ignore a more nuanced reality… money politics: an american story
According to election reform advocacy group Common Cause, billions of dollars have been spent on buying American elections since that ruling and much of it has come from completely anonymous organizations. At least six billion dollars amount spent on the 2012 election according to an estimate by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics. Candidates backed by huge one-time donations from the wealthy are inevitably more beholden to special interests. Money is exchanged directly for political favors, such as generous campaign donations for a lucrative government contract.
The problem with money politics is not so much the amount that is spent on campaigns as it is who pays for them, what they get in return, and how that affects public policy, spending priorities, and even war. Thanks to decades of rulings by Justices and politicians who molded the law to favor elite interests, corporations today are granted so-called “rights” that empower them to deny citizens the right to full democracy.
transparency in money politics
It is important to remember that transparent governments allow the public to review government practices as completely as possible. Increasing standards of transparency and accountability for decisions while adding controls for self-interested abuse of the democratic system. The federal law requiring partial or full disclosure of previously unreleased documents controlled by the government, the Freedom of Information Act, is not effective having been degraded by President George W. Bush’s OPEN Government Act (Openness Promotes Effectiveness in our National Government) and President Barack Obama’s Executive Order 13526.
Also take a look the transparency reference websites Judgepedia and Ballotpedia that are also great references.
state and local money politics
Just how much cash is being spent independently on elections for state office or in the 39 states that elect their lower court judges? The answer is unknown in most states, according to the latest National Institute on Money in State Politics analysis of disclosure requirements for independent spending. They found that only fifteen states ‘require full disclosure of both forms of independent spending: express advocacy and electioneering communications’. Amazingly, twenty-six states fail to provide clear disclosure of election spending making state politics a perfect arena for corruption without any transparency.
Properly Funded NY Public Campaign Financing Can Make a Difference (2/8/2023) - Small donors will have more influence in the upcoming election in New York thanks to… 
Public Funding Can Dilute Big Money Influence On California Politics (2/4/2023) - Implementing a matching funds program or a democracy dollars program is estimated to increase the… 
Supreme Court Loosens Rules On Personal Campaign Loans (5/18/2022) - The court ruled that a federal limit on candidates using campaign donations post-elections to repay… 
Mark Zuckerberg Ends Election Grants (4/15/2022) - Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg who gave half a billion USD in 2020 to election offices… 
How Public Campaign Financing Empowers Small Donors Nationwide (4/14/2022) - Mounting evidence...[shows] that public financing amplifies underrepresented voices and makes democracy work better for all… 
Campaign Finance Vouchers Help Level The Playing Field (1/12/2022) - Seattle's novel way to level the playing field for candidates and voters called democracy vouchers… 
Gold Bars And The Menendez Democratic Party (9/25/2023) - Do you believe the Democratic Party when it says it offers something sweeter than the… How Megadonors Circumvent Laws To Buy Politicians (5/7/2023) - America's megadonors pump cash into political systems, circumventing finance laws using joint fundraising committees. Bipartisan Ban On Stock Trading In Congress Introduced (5/7/2023) - AOC, Gaetz & Fitzpatrick introduced the Restoring Faith in Government Act to ban Congress members… 
Mega Donors Fuel $45 Million Wisconsin Supreme Court Race (4/5/2023) - Wealthy donors wield power in this April 4 spring election contest between liberal Janet Protasiewicz… 
Costly Court Race Points To Future For Judicial Elections (3/30/2023) - Thirty million dollars and counting has poured into the campaign for a swing seat on… 
Two Parties Set Record Senate Winning Streaks in 26 States (3/14/2023) - 2022 election cycle saw only one U.S. Senate seat flip as a result, more than… 
Citizens United And The Future Of Social Security (4/5/2023) - The Citizens United decision threatens Social Security. If we do not act, we will eventually… 
George Santos, Sam Bankman-Fried, and Citizens United (1/30/2023) - Ahead of 13th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision..., Washington was rocked by… 
10 Ways Citizens United Is Damaging Our Democracy (1/26/2023) - “Protecting democracy” was the top issue listed by voters as an “extremely important” reason they… 
Here At The Crossroads, To Lead Or Be Led (8/1/2022) - We will only have a chance to save our imperiled democracy if we work to… 
My Interview With DC Author Jack Jones (2/6/2022) - From time to time, it is nice to get to know some of the DC… 
Justice Breyer’s Biggest Impact On Election Law (1/28/2022) - With Stephen Breyer’s retirement from the Supreme Court, it seems appropriate to offer some words about… Join the Election Reform Movement With DC!
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