Whose Country?

Interview
Man-on-the-street TV reporter
puts a microphone in a man's face.

What do you think
of the current Administration
and the job it's doing?

This isn't an Administration.
This isn't a government.

It's a Congregation of Bubbas,
who have to make phone calls to cartels
to ask what they ought to do.

This isn't a democracy
anymore than you are a reporter.

How's that for a sexy sound byte?
-- Robert Edwards

Like many of us, I am used to thinking of our country as a democracy or at least as a democratic Republic. As the Constitution says, a government established by and for “We the People.” As Abraham Lincoln described it, a government of by and for the People. Over the last few decades since the 1980s, I have witnessed with trepidation the erosion of citizen representation, and especially since 2001, civil liberties. Much of this is due to the increase of corporate influence. Historically, some of our nations founders and leaders were wary of corporate influence over public policy. Thomas Jefferson stated that he “hoped to crush in its birth the aristocracy of our monied corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country." Andrew Jackson expressed concern in his 1833 address to Congress asking whether the American people are to govern through their elected representatives or "whether the money and power of a great corporation are to be secretly exerted to influence their judgment and control their decisions." Abe Lincoln, in response to the rise of Robber Barons wrote “As a result of the war, corporations have been enthroned and an era of corruption in high places will follow, and the money power of the country will endeavor to prolong its reign by working upon the prejudices of the people until all wealth is aggregated in a few hands, and the Republic is destroyed. I feel at this moment more anxiety for the safety of my country than ever before, even in the midst of war.”

And here we are, living in a time when nearly every politician is funded by and beholden to corporate interests. Where lobbyists outnumber elected representatives who themselves often become lobbyists after leaving office. Where powerful business consortia like The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), corporate “think tanks” and fossil fuel, pharmaceutical, insurance and agribusiness giants write legislation and monopolize representation. Where 6 corporation own 90% of our media. Our own once-local paper is a victim of this. We the People are left without representation or legitimate journalism.

The history of rising corporate influence goes back to the rise of the Robber Barons after the Civil War with the convenient misinterpretation of a supreme court ruling in 1881 (Santa Clara County vs southern Pacific Railroad) regarding the 14th Amendment guarantee of the rights of freed slaves. The railroad Company argued that it was a person too, reasoning that just as the Constitution prohibited discrimination on the basis of racial identity, so did it bar discrimination against Southern Pacific on the basis of its corporate identity. The court actually ruled against them but it was misreported setting a dangerous precedent based on a lie. Over the last few decades, especially since the “Citizens United” ruling allowed corporate personhood and money being considered speech, we have seen the expansion of corporate dominance and the growth of secretive superpacs poisoning the electoral process.

Our two major parties are controlled by big business. Prior to the 1980s the GOP was pro-corporate with the Democrats being somewhat more citizen focused, thanks to FDR and the New Deal. With the rise of the present DNC this changed. Writer and political analyst Thomas Frank points to a decision by Democratic Party elites in the 1970s to jettison the New Deal, marginalize labor unions and transform the party to one representing the professional, managerial class rather than blue collar workers. In so doing, the Democratic Party radically changed the way it understood and dealt with social problems. Today, both parties are guided by economic “neoliberalism” marked by undoing public protections that affect corporate profits, privatizing and slashing public programs, increasing wealth disparity with fortunes accruing to a few at the expense of the majority and an overall prioritizing of business interests over the public health and safety. Lincoln's fears have been made manifest.

I recall when the biggest fear voiced by conservatives, usually aimed at distrust of the U.N. and international law, was that our country might be taken over by or become subservient to foreign governments. The reality today is that we have been taken over by unelected and unaccountable corporations which operate globally dictating our laws and foreign policies. Today, 69 of the richest 100 entities on the planet are corporations, not governments, and they exert great influence which affect us all. As sidelined citizens we often feel helpless and afraid for our own futures as we struggle to survive, hold on to our jobs and to what little security we have from day to day. But that isn't enough. Without governments independent of private corporate influence and without the leash of laws which protect public interests and which separate private money influence from public policy, corporate rule doesn't just impoverish. In its constant growth and endless drive for profits at any expense it is consuming our future and literally destroying the world.

We the People have options. Though our electoral system is corrupted and broken our votes can still make a difference. As I've said before, the only things that matter about any candidate are their actual record and who is funding their campaign. If you vote for a candidate backed by Dominion Power, McDonnell Douglas, the NRA, Exxon-Mobil or Aetna, that is who they will represent. If you vote for a crowd-funded candidate who rejects corporate backing, they will most likely represent you. But voting is not enough. We have to be active on the issues that affect us. Each issue has organizations focused on it which we can join or at least support. We can and should write, call or visit our representatives. We can still take our country back from private interests and restore a representative Republic. There are ongoing efforts to do this and you can count on entrenched corrupt politicians and the corporate media to vilify them, as they continue to do in defending corporate power and agendas. That vilification is evidence that a legislative effort, candidate or leader is prioritizing public interests over private agendas. Ultimately, it is up to us to defend our democratic ideals, our freedoms and our future.