In the end, Alex Bumberg asks Russ Feingold why no one is pushing for a change in the system. His response, though it could be described as disheartening, is something that I can understand. “It’s the system, and it’s the water in which we swim…[they] were elected under the system...It’s hard to get people to change something after they win that way.” It is crushing to think that Congress could be so corrupt. But any system can be difficult to challenge, especially when it benefits so many people with so much influence. Bumberg points out how many of the politicians and lobbyists they spoke to hate the mess that is political fundraising. I honestly don’t think I understand the system well enough to fully appreciate that these individuals who…
There have been many attempts to reform the campaign finance since the 19th Century and before the reform was introduced, there were concerns over the amount of money being spent by individual candidates in the run up to an election and the actual presidential elections. In 1974, under President Ford, the Congress passed significant amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act creating a way to regulate campaign contributions and spending.…
In his book, Big Money: 2.5 Billion Dollars, One Suspicious Vehicle, and a Pimp- on the Trail of the Ultra-Rich Hijacking American Politics, author Kenneth P. Vogel writes on the newly less regulated, and arguably more corrupt relationship between the American political system and big money donors. In this response paper I will address the main questions in relation to the text. One, which Supreme Court decision allowed for the rise in “Big Money’s” influence over the American political system? Two, how did the Supreme Court decision addressed in question one change both the American political landscape and the fundraising techniques used by those involved in political fundraising? And third, how did the Republicans and Democrats each respond in 2012 to “Big Money” in the American political system. I will follow the answers to these questions with a later section in my paper devoted to a personal response to Vogel’s text, as well as connections between his text and broader topic discussed in our Interest Groups class lectures.…
Setting a regulation to funnel the wealthy elite’s money into super PACs takes away power from the everyday individual and their right to have a government by the people for the people. Also, it perpetuates corruption due to the super PACs not being legally obligated to disclose their spending, which is known as “dark money”. This continues the cycle of corruption by decreasing transparency of a candidate, making the candidate and their interests less known to the public. Due to this, he public is unable to make informed decisions to better not only their own lives, but the entire country through their vote (Levy 1).…
When things don’t work the way they should, people start to worry. They know that they need something to change. This is what Fiorina explains in chapter The Rise of The Washington Establishment about voting. The main focus of this chapter is the issues of self interest related to government and its congressmen, bureaucrats, and voters.…
As one can see, campaign finance reform has been around for a while, not that many people were really aware of it until the Citizens United v. FEC case of 2010. Citizens United was founded in 1988 by a Washington political consultant, Floyd Brown who received major funding from the Koch brothers, industrialist who own the secondly largest privately owned company in the US (Mayer, 2010). They gained fame by suing the Federal Election Commission (FEC), leading to a notorious Supreme Court case which eliminated some restrictions on how corporations can spend money in elections. Back in 1971, the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) was the main United States federal law that regulates political fundraising and spending. Its original focus was…
One of the biggest problems in this country is the corruption that plagues are politicians. If we the people elect a politician it should be the people that the politician listens to. The United States is ridiculously rich, yet nothing ever seems to get done around here. Our military budget for this year is almost 800 billion dollars. Yet the cost to end world hunger is only…
Over the past three decades, elections have ceased to give people the choice they are intended to have when voting for their senators and representatives. From 1975 to the present, incumbents have won their reelection bids over 90% of the time. Opponents to term limits point out that elections are designed to hold officials accountable to the people they are representing. Yet, congressmen use their large monetary funds, benefits, name recognition, and experience to end rival campaigns before they…
It is said that the huge significance of money compromises America’s democracy. This is why spending limits have been introduced. In the aftermath of the crooked Watergate scandal, anxiety over campaign finance led to the passage of two major reform bills—the Revenue Act of 1971 and the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974—that…
Campaign related spending has increased dramatically over time. Even though the Supreme Court has ruled that campaign spending (not donations) by candidates and private individuals / groups is a form of free speech, some feel that there is just too much money in our election system. What do you think? Is campaign spending problematic? In what way(s) is it, or is it not, problematic exactly? Please explain your answer and provide evidence…
democracy, however, corruption and extreme competitive advantage with relations to campaign funding are extremely prevalent as well. Which brings up the second step in my plan: to clean up the presidential campaigns by limiting the funds awarded to each running candidate by using clean elections. When it comes to running a campaign in the United States presidential elections, money is one of the major factors. With political campaigns being expensive candidates cannot always fund their campaign by themselves. Therefore, candidates reach out to donors for money to fund their campaigns. These donors influence the results of the elections substantially and can have a significant impact on who wins the election. The solution to this problem would be to switch over to a clean election system. The idea of clean elections involves public funding to candidates, meaning that each candidate would get a set amount of money to run his or her campaign. Clean elections would not only level the playing field between all candidates running in an election, but it would also reduce corruption within the U.S. democracy by cutting out the big corporations paying for the candidate that best benefits them. With less corruption and equal playing fields, this could also create an opportunity for a third-party candidate to claim a win in an…
In the first article “Voters Are Ready to Punish Pro-Gun Politicians. There’s Just One Problem” by George Zornick talks about where the candidates stand on the topic of guns during the races. It is believed that the gun control issue would be a big factor during the race. Voters want to know where it is that the both candidates, Kelly Ayotte and Marco Rubio, stand on. It mentions how 76 percent of the voters in Florida believe that Rubio actually “supports banning people on the terror lists from buying guns” (Zornick). Another 69 percent believe or are unsure whether or not he “supports background checks on gun sales” (Zornick). In the case of Kelly Ayotte, 74 percent of the voters from New Hampshire believe or are unsure that Ayotte agrees…
I wish that politics would involve governing and making compromises for the general welfare rather than grandstanding or uttering controversial comments for the sake of political capital or attention. The idea of grandstanding to gain political recognition and capital undermines the basic foundations of democracy and compromise laid forth by our Founding Fathers. In a republic country where money is construed as speech and the candidate who raises the grandest and most expensive war chest often wins, the voices of the common man are trampled and muffled under the heavy and growing influence of the affluent.…
Over the course of centuries, the United States of America has had many different Presidents, senators, and other government officials. Though no two government officials are alike, one similarity that many of them have is wealth. Typically, one must run a campaign and convince the public that they are fit to rule in order to be appointed to a position of power in government. These campaigns often require a large amount of money, that is covered by donations, sponsors, or personal income. Often times, donations and great ideas are not enough to win a political campaign, and sponsors or personal income are needed. Candidates capable of funding their own campaigns are typically millionaires or even billionaires. In order to have a good chance…
As PACs are burdensome and expensive to administer they reduce the quantity of speech, for the quantity of speech is limited by financial resources available for the expression of political ideas. Consequently, expenditure restrictions function as a barrier to corporate speech and thereby prevent corporate voices from reaching the public and advising voters and deprive the public of its right to decide which speech and speakers are worthy of consideration. Therefore, restrictions on corporate expenditures also restrict political speech itself. Such restrictions can only be justified if they further a compelling interest and are narrowly tailored to achieve this…