Given the unfettered pipeline for corporate money to politicians as the result of the SCOTUS Citizens United decision, why is it that big business hasn't bought a better Congress?
"From overhauling immigration laws to increasing spending on the nation's aging infrastructure, big business leaders have seemed relatively powerless lately as the uncompromising Republicans they helped elect have steadfastly opposed some of their core legislative priorities. . . .This is especially surprising in light of the unprecedented amounts of money flowing into political campaigns. But, as it turns out, not so much of it is from corporations per se -- only $75 million outright to federal campaigns in 2012.
" . . . if companies could purchase the Congress of their choice, it's unlikely they would buy the gridlocked Congress we have. The seemingly inexorable rise of political partisans . . . suggest that corporate money may be playing a much smaller role in the political process than expected."
Perhaps corporations have been giving too little, this article suggests. "Their money was swamped by that of big individual donors who are more ideologically extreme. In 2012, the top 0.1 percent of donors contributed more than 44 percent of all campaign contributions."
So, according to this thesis, we need not fear Big Business and Big Pharma as much as the super-wealthy Koch Brothers and the Sheldon Adelsons of the ideological right wing.
Yes . . . but. This does not take into account the money corporations spend on lobbying. It is looking only at campaign contributions. It's still a lot of money corrupting our political process, wherever it comes from.
Ralph
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