campaign finance reform | Existential Ennui

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campaign finance reform, John Boehner, Mitch McConnell, Politics, Supreme Court of the United States

The late not so great US of A. The country that turned into a corporation and had a revolving door boardroom of like-seeing people. Total dedication to pursuit of the almighty dollar.

Giving lip-service to the Christian right, purged of it’s bothersome ethnic, religious, and racial minorities.

Imploding in a last gasp internal war between the greedy and the more greedy.

A vast underclass of disallusioned workers who learned too late that the pie was never meant for them.

A military treated to various hedonistic delights in return for which they insulate the wealthy from the mob, who beg for food.

Sound familiar?

I see that as America’s future. I surely do. And I don’t think of myself as much of a conspiracy believer.

Back in January the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 decision, that the government could not limit corporate funding of individual campaigns, claiming that to do so denied its 1st amendment right to free speech. Essentially, corporations were declared persons for purposes of the constitution.

No rational constititutionalist of course would ever argue that this was part of the founders intent, but no matter, judicial “activism” only depends in the end on whether you like the decision or don’t.

But this is only part of what may be an insideous and ongoing plan to take over all of government.

Now, I am aware that many would argue that that has already happened. What with all the K Street shenanigans which pass for “lobbying,” one can make a good case that the country is already firmly under the control of the business community.

But a few other things are most troubling at least to me.

One is the present state of the economy. Two things here. One is that by all the endices I’ve seen, most of corporate America is doing quite well. They are cash heavy, at least those large corporations. Yet they are not hiring.

The second thing that interests me is the fact that banks are still refusing to make small business loans to those who desperately wish to expand their businesses and hire new workers.

To me, these things seem related. And conspiratorial in goal.

Many would argue that nothing stops the pursuit of money on the part of enterpreneurial America. I agree, to a point. I do think that they can delay their money fetish just long enough to reach a greater goal: namely the election of a more favorable government which will allow them to pursue their goals in a more regulation-free way.

So, it seems to me that this gives incentive to banks to refuse to loan, and to big corporations to refuse to hire, all for the real purpose of making the Obama administration look as bad as possible going into the fall election cycle.

I certainly don’t think that corporate America is beneath this kind of strategy. Once upon a time, I would have thought that all but a handful of politicians would have cried foul. No, in today’s climate, especially among the GOP, I can see them easily going along with such a plan. Indeed, I can fairly see John Boehner and Mitch McConnell laughing and joking with glee every time the jobs report comes out.

No pain and sadness at millions of people out of work and struggling to raise they kids in some kind of decent home. I see most Gopers in callous disregard for the average American out there.

But it gets even worse than this. And thinking about it is what prompted this post.

We have before us an unprecedented (at least as I recall) number of candidates running for public office, pouring in literally MILLIONS of dollars of their own personal wealth. This is happening in Florida (Scott), California (Whitman) and Connecticut (McMah0n).

Once upon a time, we were taught that anyone could run for office. Anyone could rise to be President. That is increasingly not the case any more. Wealth buys all that TV time that is now essential to success. And some people are obscenely wealthy and prepared to use large chunks of it in pursuit of their goal of winning.

Perhaps for some it is merely an ego trip. But I suggest that for many, it amounts to a determination to change Washington into a more business friendly environment (as if it could be more so than it is). And this frustrates and inhibits the ability of the people’s voice to be heard.

Indeed, what with complaints about judicial “activism” and calls for impeachment, voting judges out whom you don’t agree with, and the like, we are soon to lose any semblance of a representative government controlled by checks and balances as OUR FOUNDERS INTENDED.

Ironic isn’t it? But it is now apparent that there is a pattern. The issue of founders intent is raised to object to what one dislikes, and ignored when we wish to subvert the very document itself.

I’m prepared to be shown that my logic is faulty here, but it does seem curious how all this somehow fits together. If indeed we are in the midst of those who are deliberately attempting to subvert our economic recovery to insert their claws more deeply into the fabric of America, then we have much to be concerned about.

And similarly, we need to look at the issue of whether we can allow any candidate for any office to spend outrageous amounts of money, even if it is their own, in pursuit of winning. When the playing field is not level, then there is no fairness.

What do you think?