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Democracy Chronicles

Money Politics: Lobbying and Corruption in America

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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.

money in elections
Moneyed Interests, Information Provision, and Congress Moneyed Interests, Information Provision, and Congress (5/17/2022) - Politicians wrongly assume their self-interests are compatible with constituents' interests, the rich tend to have…
Unprecedented Lobbying Haul Puts 2022 On Track For Record Year Unprecedented Lobbying Haul Puts 2022 On Track For Record Year (5/8/2022) - This year is on track for record lobbying spending after lobbyists collectively clocked the biggest…
Pro-Crypto Cash Floods Democratic Primaries, Rankling Some Lawmakers Pro-Crypto Cash Floods Democratic Primaries, Rankling Some Lawmakers (5/4/2022) - McBath has something Bourdeaux does not: backing from a 30-year-old billionaire who co-founded a cryptocurrency…
A Hard Look At Corporations, Political Spending And Democracy A Hard Look At Corporations, Political Spending And Democracy (5/3/2022) - There is a crisis of democracy in America which poses fundamental questions for company engagement…
The Brokers Who Make Millions Selling Your Data To Political Groups The Brokers Who Make Millions Selling Your Data To Political Groups (4/24/2022) - OpenSecrets has tracked roughly $6 million in payments to brokers from congressional seats and super…
Who's Giving To Trump's Super PAC Who’s Giving To Trump’s Super PAC (4/22/2022) - Make America Great Again, Again! Inc. only brought in a fraction of what Save America Joint…
free speech
Concerns Remain As Egypt Frees Activists And Critics Concerns Remain As Egypt Frees Activists And Critics (5/8/2022) - Towards Ramadan's end on April 24, Egyptian authorities freed about 40 unjustly detained, including journalists. But this…
How China Is Stepping Up Harassment Of Foreign Correspondents How China Is Stepping Up Harassment Of Foreign Correspondents (5/8/2022) - Journalists reporting the deadly floods of 2021 in Zhengzhou city, Henan province, were accused of…
Journalists Assaulted Amid Political Transition In Pakistan Journalists Assaulted Amid Political Transition In Pakistan (5/8/2022) - Ever since the transition started in Pakistan, journalists have faced assault and online and legal…
India Falls 8 Places To 150th Position In Press Freedom Rankings India Falls 8 Places To 150th Position In Press Freedom Rankings (5/6/2022) - India's ranking in the World Press Freedom Index has fallen down to 150th position from…
Japan Falls To 71st In Press Freedom Rankings Japan Falls To 71st In Press Freedom Rankings (5/6/2022) - Japan dropped to 71st in the 2022 world press freedom rankings by Reporters Without Borders,…
PODCAST: Debating The Future Of Debates (5/4/2022) - We love a good debate — and have certainly had plenty of them on this…
transparency
Election Denial In The Race For Pennsylvania Governor Election Denial In The Race For Pennsylvania Governor (5/17/2022) - Elec­tion denial - the stance that Biden didn’t win the 2020 elec­tion - has loomed large…
Occam’s Razor And Election Fraud Occam’s Razor And Election Fraud (5/12/2022) - The idea that thousands of operators from multiple states can cover their tracks so well…
The Birth Of A Right-Wing Term Of Art: ‘Ballot Trafficking’ The Birth Of A Right-Wing Term Of Art: ‘Ballot Trafficking’ (5/8/2022) - Absence of evidence of ballot tampering at noticeable scale should serve as inoculation against vague…
Fake Threat: Voter Fraud By Undocumented Immigrants Fake Threat: Voter Fraud By Undocumented Immigrants (5/1/2022) - Republican leaders and candidates are increasingly claiming without basis that illegal immigrants are gaining access…
In Election Misinformation Fight, ’2020 Changed Everything’ In Election Misinformation Fight, ’2020 Changed Everything’ (4/26/2022) - Using social media to directly reply to queries, polling location mistakes, or false claims might…
Here’s What Electoral Count Act Reform Should Look Like Here’s What Electoral Count Act Reform Should Look Like (4/8/2022) - Congress is working on reforming the statute that governs the casting and counting of electoral…

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.

Money Politics
Corruption depicted by Thomas Nast – link

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.

public funding
Mark Zuckerberg Ends Election Grants 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 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  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…
Democratic state officials call on Biden to boost election funding Democratic state officials call on Biden to boost election funding (12/15/2021) - Top election officials in 14 states Monday asked Biden to boost election funding, citing financial…
Seattle Voters Increasing Use of Democracy Vouchers Seattle Voters Increasing Use of Democracy Vouchers (6/26/2021) - Two new candidates for Seattle Mayor have relied heavily on "democracy vouchers" whose use is…
Politicians Can Raise Unlimited Money To Repay Themselves Politicians Can Raise Unlimited Money To Repay Themselves (6/6/2021) - A D.C federal judge ruled Wednesday that federal candidates can now raise money to repay…
corruption
Fake Threat: Voter Fraud By Undocumented Immigrants Fake Threat: Voter Fraud By Undocumented Immigrants (5/1/2022) - Republican leaders and candidates are increasingly claiming without basis that illegal immigrants are gaining access…
Who Pays For America? (4/18/2022) - The taxes that are being placed on middle class in America are ridiculous. The rich…
Intuit Spends Big Lobbying Amid Accusations Of Deceptive Advertising Intuit Spends Big Lobbying Amid Accusations Of Deceptive Advertising (4/5/2022) - FEC filed a complaint Monday saying TurboTax-owning company Intuit wrongly advertised its paid tax filing…
Mitch McConnell’s Personal Mission To Keep Dark Money Flowing Mitch McConnell’s Personal Mission To Keep Dark Money Flowing (3/28/2022) - Since Biden revealed Ketanji B. Jackson as his Supreme Court candidate, the GOP's hypocrisy on…
Holding Them Accountable For Our Failed Democracy (3/22/2022) - The greed of corporate America is and has been threatening our existence. They are price…
IRS Struggles Allow Secret Election Spending To Flourish IRS Struggles Allow Secret Election Spending To Flourish (3/20/2022) - "Dark money" groups employ this hidden cash to skew the political system in favor of…
citizens united
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 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…
Citizens United: A Supreme Court Decision That Shouldn't Have Been Enforced Citizens United Should Not Have Been Enforced (10/23/2021) - Citizens United is without a doubt the Supreme Court's most contentious recent decision. Repealing it…
Money Is Speech Money Is Speech (6/19/2021) - I'm not a constitutional scholar. I discuss issues of public interest by using my common…
Citizens ununited Citizens ununited (10/27/2020) - The Supreme Court should never have had the option to decide whether or not to…
Corporate Personhood Thoughts on Corporate Personhood (3/10/2019) - In looking for sense in the modern world, we must not overlook the fact that,…

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