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FROM AP: Quotations of the day
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
Reasonable people would agree that a bank having a history of involvement with fraud and mismanagement (and a recipient of one of the largest bank bailouts) shouldn't be writing bank legislation. Unless, of course, you are the U.S. Congress doing business as usual.
We've had a virtually lawless campaign finance system in Missouri for more than four years. Here's what it looks like.
While we are obviously not afraid to have a sense of humor (see video), we are dead serious about fixing this problem. Just ask the guy in the American flag underwear.
There are two simple solutions that Congress could enact tomorrow that would deal with the real problem, which is lack of disclosure of major political donors to (c)(4) groups.
If compensation is solely based on influence, it would be difficult to argue that anyone should be paid more than CEOs of large companies. And yes, this includes political leaders.
Money in politics corruption is universally reviled by the American public. It blocks progress on most issues, squanders billions of dollars from philanthropists and stymies the most skillful public interest advocates. It even drives issues like the sizzling IRS scandal, though you wouldn't know it by watching the news. But it would be foolish to believe that a culture of corruption that developed over decades can be undone overnight. It will take time, exactly the same kind of slow and painful social change that created the corruption in the first place. We have to create the conditions where politicians representing their constituents is "normal." And even if we do, all politicians will not suddenly become enlightened. It just means we'll have a better chance that the actual needs of society will more frequently be met by the actions of its government.
Seven-ish months ago I hated Los Angeles, didn't care who ran for mayor, and had no conception that the city could do anything to hasten the day when the Big Money devil is no longer allowed to poison politics and, by extension, almost every aspect of life.
Equally, if not more, disturbing, is that other than the investigation of this handful of groups, the IRS hasn't actually taken the steps needed to ensure that sham non-profits are not abusing the tax code to flood our elections with secret money.
Simply tallying Adelson's wins and losses -- or the Koch brothers', or George Soros's, or any other mega-donors' -- misses the bigger point.
Americans of all political stripes should be outraged at the recent revelation that the Tea Party was unfairly targeted by the IRS before last year's election. But the lesson that the right is drawing from the IRS's misdeeds is wrong.
What we need is something to take the place of Occupy; a sort of honesty movement to bring about greater transparency and accountability in government.
“We got way too excited over money in the 2012 elections,” Washington Post columnist Ezra Klein argued at a conference on money in politic...
We went to war with Germany, Italy and Japan on December 7, 1941 to defeat fascism. Most people would define fascism as a rigid social order that sub...
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