For today’s report, I have a bunch of statistics for you. Wait… don’t run away! Where are you going? Come back here and sit still while I drill these stats into your head!
I realize that numbers can numb the brain, but this is a good story, and I promise that these statistics are easy to absorb. In fact, the number 400 pretty much sums it up. It’s a story of political intrigue and corruption involving some of America’s wealthiest families and corporations.
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Start with the “Billionaire 400,” a clique of the elite organized by the conniving Koch brothers. These ultra-rich right-wingers gather each winter in some warm weather resort for a secretive, invitation-only retreat. There, they plot strategies and pledge money for electing politicos who’ll support their vision of corporate rule in America. For the 2016 elections, they’ve already committed nearly a billion dollars to impose their vision of plutocracy over our democratic ideals – double the combined amount that the Republican and Democratic parties will spend.
Then, there are the secretive SuperPACs that’re sacking-up tens of millions of dollars to back various presidential candidates. Again, a mere 400 corporations and rich families – each writing checks for hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars – have put up nearly half of all the money in these electioneering committees.
But now, here comes the antidote to this corruption of our politics by fat cats. Instead of being financed by 400 special interests, Bernie Sanders’ campaign has raised its $15 million from 400,000 ordinary Americans. In fact, the average donation to Bernie is a heartwarming, soul-saving $31.30!
You can’t buy a president for 30 bucks – but you can help elect one who isn’t owned by Big Money. Isn’t that the way it ought to be?
“Bernie Sanders’ Small-Beer Donors,” The New York Times, August 28, 2015.
“Sanders’s Success in Attracting Small Donors Tests Importance of ‘SuperPACs’,” The New York Times, August 26, 2015.
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