How are elections being funded?
I have been thinking about my mother quite a bit lately. She wanted me to become an attorney. Dad, on the other hand, wanted me to go into the family newspaper business. Mom and I both heeded dad’s wishes. I am disappointed I did.
Trying to understand legal rulings
Disappointed because if I had become an attorney, I might understand the ruling of the U.S. Supreme court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission. I am also concerned about how much an individual can spend on his or her own campaign.
Now, I am not saying I would have enjoyed being an attorney, all the jokes aside. I can count on one hand all the attorneys I trust. But this is based on my own experience.
See, I believe that the issues mentioned above, allows individuals and corporations more “equality” than I have. To my non-lawyer mind, if you have money, you have more votes, it is this simple.
Two examples of massive spending on elections
Two examples from the last election come to mind. Mark Zuckerberg, yes the Facebook Mark Zuckerberg, spent $500 million of his own money on the presidential election. In my home state of Colorado, Jared Polis spent at least $19 million on his campaign for governor in 2018.
This is more than troubling to me. I believe that when people can spend like this, the rest of us get screwed. These individuals look at things top-down, i.e. If you do not have what I have, I do not need to consider your viewpoints. The adage that wealth does not give one wisdom certainly applies in these examples. These two do not care about those of us with bills to pay and mouths to feed.
In the case of Zuckerberg, check out his thoughts highlighted in the book “Anti-Social Media” by Siva Vaidhyanathan to see this. In Polis’s case, look at how he treated “essential businesses” during this last year.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
In Zuckerberg’s case, I blame the U.S. Supreme Court for making corporations into people in the decision on Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010). In Polis’s case, his arrogance is evident.
Our election laws are failing the United States citizens. We have said it before on this site and I will say it again now, election laws benefit the powerful and the rich. What a nasty state of affairs.
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