Credit: Dan Page
In late June 2017, Texas political mega-donor Doug Deason had a stern message for Republicans seeking campaign donations: The “Dallas piggy bank” was closed until they repealed Obamacare and passed major tax cuts. Deason said he had urged about two dozen of his wealthy Texas friends to do the same. The billionaire Koch brothers Charles and David also hinted at withholding money.
Just weeks later, the GOP effort to repeal Obamacare collapsed. Tax reform, which one Republican senator said would make repealing Obamacare look like a piece of cake, ominously loomed as the next item on the GOP agenda, and time was running out. Panic set in. By November, as Congress struggled to push a massive tax cut bill forward, Rep. Chris Collins from New York summed up the stakes: “My donors are basically saying: ‘Get it done or don’t ever call me again.’”
Lawmakers got it done. Just days before the holiday break, relieved Republicans delivered those wealthy donors what they wanted: one of the biggest tax cuts in history, […]
Great ideas, not so easily implemented. The entitlement of those with large sums of money that far exceed ordinary mortals is unfathomable. There are two possibilities. One; we will consciously move towards Stephans ‘wellness’ form of ethical engagement over profit. Or two, all these natural and man-made systems will collapse and humanity will be left to pick up the pieces.
There are billionaires (oligarchs?) on both sides of the political isle. There are the famous Hollywood and television types. All successful in their own arenas. They are all entitled to their views. Their success at what they do may afford them a large bully pulpit. It certainly does not mean they are the smartest people. Most just have inflated egos and think they are. People with common sense see right through this.
Eliminating the Electoral College is a bad idea. Giving 50.0001% of the population control over the other 49.9999% would be a disaster. The founders knew this. The wisdom in the US Constitution has served this country well for almost 250 years.
John I think number 2 will be the only way that the strangle hold of money could possibly be broken. The trance state that many humans operate in regarding money; the fear of lack of it and the greed for more of it is unlikely to be broken without some level of suffering. Then there is also a belief among some that if you made it you deserve to keep it. We are in this too short life together and no one is taking the Bentley with them so a little more sharing might be better.
Tom how is it that all other democratic societies function without this antebellum institution designed with slave states in mind? There are other ways to design election systems that are tried and tested in other countries that are much truer to one-person-one-vote. How do you justify the last election that trump LOST by close to 2.9m votes(google)? Or is this a state’s rights issue?
will, trump lost CA by over 4m votes. In my state NY by almost 2m. I don’t know about CA, but I certainly know NY … It is one poorly run and corrupt state. And highly taxed. People are leaving in droves.The thought of one heavily populated state deciding the way for the other 49 just doesn’t sit well with me. All states large and small each have two senate seats and I prefer the EC setup as is to maintain balance, my two cents.