You can't make this stuff up. Breaking news from The Huffington Post:
Three days after receiving $25 billion in federal bailout funds, Bank of America Corp. hosted a conference call with conservative activists and business officials to organize opposition to the U.S. labor community's top legislative priority.
Participants on the October 17 call -- including at least one representative from another bailout recipient, AIG -- were urged to persuade their clients to send "large contributions" to groups working against the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), as well as to vulnerable Senate Republicans, who could help block passage of the bill....Donations of hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars to Republican senatorial campaigns were needed, they argued..."If a retailer has not gotten involved in this, if he has not spent money on this election, if he has not sent money to [former Sen.] Norm Coleman and all these other guys, they should be shot. They should be thrown out their goddamn jobs," Marcus declared.
Not only are some of the most non-trusted companies in America blatantly trying to buy off Congress, but they're using our bailout money to do it. Enough!
If there was ever a time to join Change Congress's political "donor strike" in support of fundamental campaign finance reform, this is it.
Click here to join the fight for reform.
Together, thousands of us have pledged not to donate a penny more to politicians unless they support "citizen-funded elections" for Congress -- a combination of public financing plus Obama-style small-dollar donations. We have removed $431,000 from the campaign coffers of those who oppose reform, and it's growing by the hour.
Instead of politicians spending their time begging those who got us into this economic crisis for big-dollar checks, politicians will have to spend their time being responsive to regular people. That's the way democracy should work. And now, at this moment of outrageous news, all of us can do our part. Please join the fight for reform today by clicking here, and then forward this news to some friends today.
Thanks for changing Congress,
Lawrence Lessig & Joe Trippi (co-founders, Change Congress)
UPDATE: A commenter at DailyKos smartly said we should Digg and Reddit this. Please do!
Thomas Frank: It's Time to Give Voters the Liberalism They Want [11-18-08] - WSJ.com
http://firedoglake.com/2009/02/01/cutting-the-gordian-knot-of-bad-contracts-to-save-the-economy/
We are so screwed.............
Thank you Mr. Lessig
Its just that this time its OUR TAX DOLLARS being used to buy off politicians.
Until this system of "the best government money can buy" is changed, big business will continue to contribute to politicians who will legislate their interests at the expense of the workers and taxpayers.
On June 4, 1963, for example, JFK signed Executive Order No. 11110 to return the power to issue currency without going through the Federal Reserve back to the federal government.
http://www.john-f-kennedy.net/executiveorder11110.htm
Obama could enforce that Executive Order and give the federal government the ability to repay its debt without going to the Federal Reserve and being charged interest in order to create the new money. Just as LBJ and all presidents since have not implimented it, Obama won't either. The big-money people control this country and all the elected officials in positions of power.
I am wondering when those enterpenural types are doing a Deck Of Playing cards with all these faceless crooks who are laughing at the American People for being stooges in this ruse. Is it a matter of time when Videos come forward, like the ones from Enron, were Yuppies are mocking Grannies who have lost everything. The Profits from selling the deck of cards displaying the Faces of Greed would finance the Lessons in Ethics required to yank this run away train back on track.
It is nothing wrong with CEOs spending their, let me underline it THEIR, money for whatever purpose they desire. It is stupid to give them public money, period.
The solution is not in giving economic stimulus (read: public money) to dinosaurs that are doomed to die, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/henryk-a-kowalczyk/its-time-for-financial-di_b_128466.html .
The solution is not in more excessive government regulations of big business; it is in fewer regulations at all so more individuals would be able to start new businesses.
Her Bill was never passed and tried in Poland.
This is exactly what Ralph Nader's been talking about for years
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQjpp0P5xLs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucKeyU2ea28
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=4B6F6E30F054CA82
most excellent site - signed up!
It's time for some transparency, folks! These crooks have robbed America blind and then they use those funds to buy off our representatives! This has got to stop!!!
and no soul
sigh
why did we allow them to get so much power?
Bring back regulations!!!!
Pull all but one cent out of you bank account.
That keeps the account open and forces the banks to produce a monthly statement...which they have to mail to you...and take a beating on the postage.
Take your money and go somewhere else!
To refer to them as clueless or tone-deaf is exactly what they'd like us to do, but they know exactly what they're doing...