Money and Politics
Money is the root of all evil, so they say, and perhaps there is no better example of this than a quick look at the current role of money within our American political system. It’s a sad truth, but one we must come to grips with – money dominates all things in Washington.
Corporations have more power today within our government than perhaps ever before in history. Lobbyists flood our nation’s capital, with some accounts putting the number of official and unofficial lobbyists in Washington at or near a staggering 100,000 individuals. Members of congress have routine and ongoing cozy relationships with past, present, and future heads of mega billion-dollar companies and organizations, and they do so on a regular basis.
Campaign donations are critical to any candidate’s chance at future elections. As a result, politicians spend less and less time working for the American people, and more and more time fundraising for re-election. Supreme Court rulings such as that in the Citizens United case have made it consistently easier for big money to influence our elections. Estimates predict that the upcoming 2014 and then 2016 elections will be the most expensive in history, and by a significant margin.
The 2012 elections cost over 6.2 billion dollars, with over 3.6 billion spent on US Congressional races alone, according to OpenSecrets.org. Could that money not have been better spent on the needs of the American public?
This is absolutely ridiculous. There is no reason why American citizens should be forced to put up with this level of grotesque, unnecessary campaign spending. Americans deserve candidates who work for them, not big money interests. Both the Democrats and Republicans have failed the citizens of this country by playing into this game of political panhandling.
We need a system that outlaws unlimited campaign donations from big-money interests. We need a public system that is fair and equal for all potential candidates running for office, regardless of party. The American people need politicians who are willing to run for them, not for a handful of super-rich billionaires willing to buy-up campaigns on all sides of the political spectrum.
Money is not free speech. Money should never influence who does or does not have a right to be heard. Our fundamental freedom of speech applies to all people, regardless of their financial or economic status. We cannot forget this as a nation. We must hold our politicians accountable based on the scope of their merit, and not the size of their bank accounts. The fundamental system as a whole must be changed for the betterment of the American people.