Hardly a champion of democracy, JPMorgan Chase CEO Janie Dimon piloted the corporate lobbying campaign for the Trump tax cut and led Wall Street's charge against stricter bank regulation. (Photo: Kena Betancur/AFP via Getty Images)
Sedition By Other Means: Corporate Executives and Lobbyists Routinely Undermine Democracy to Protect Their Bottom Line
The corporate assault on democracy hasn't been as violent as the pro-Trump mob who stormed the Capitol. And it's entirely legal. But it's arguably more damaging over the long term.
The sudden lurch from Trump to Biden is generating vertigo all over Washington, including the so-called fourth branch of government--CEOs and their army of lobbyists.
CEOs are being hailed--and hailing themselves--as guardians of democracy. That's after saying they will no longer donate to the 147 Republican members of Congress who objected to the certification of Biden electors, on the basis of Trump's lies about widespread fraud.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
Give me a break. For years, big corporations have been assaulting democracy with big money, drowning out the voices and needs of ordinary Americans, and fueling much of the anger and cynicism that opened the door to Trump in the first place.
Their assault hasn't been as violent as the pro-Trump mob who stormed the Capitol. And it's entirely legal. But it's arguably more damaging over the long term.
A study published a few years ago by two of America's most respected political scientists, Princeton professor Martin Gilens and Benjamin Page of Northwestern, concluded that the preferences of the average American "have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically nonsignificant impact upon public policy." Lawmakers respond almost exclusively to the moneyed interests--those with the most lobbying prowess and deepest pockets to bankroll campaigns.
So now, in the wake of Trump's calamitous exit and Biden's ascension, we're to believe CEOs care about democracy?
As Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, put it, "No one thought they were giving money to people who supported sedition."
Yet Dimon has been a leader of a more insidious form of sedition. He piloted the corporate lobbying campaign for the Trump tax cut, deploying a vast war chest of corporate donations.
For more than a decade Dimon has driven Wall Street's charge against stricter bank regulation, opening bipartisan doors in the Capitol with generous gifts from the Street. (Dimon calls himself a Democrat).
When Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg shut Trump's Facebook account, he declared: "You just can't have a functioning democracy without a peaceful transition of power."
But where was Zuckerberg's concern for a "functioning democracy" when he amplified Trump's bigotry and lies for over four years?
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
After taking down Trump's Twitter account, Jack Dorsey expressed discomfort about "the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation."
Spare me. Dorsey has fought all attempts to limit Twitter's power over the "global conversation." He shuttered Trump only after Democrats secured the presidency and control of the Senate.
Look, I'm glad CEOs are penalizing the 147 Republican seditionists and that big tech is starting to regulate social media content.
But don't confuse the avowed concerns of these CEOs about democracy with democracy itself. They aren't answerable to democracy. At most, they're answerable to big shareholders and institutional investors who don't give a fig as long as profits keep rolling in.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
And they would throw their weight behind the "For the People Act," the first bills of the new Congress, offering public financing of elections among other reforms.
Don't hold your breath.
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
Make no mistake: These CEOs and their corporations don't actually care about protecting democracy. They care only about protecting their bottom line.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
The sudden lurch from Trump to Biden is generating vertigo all over Washington, including the so-called fourth branch of government--CEOs and their army of lobbyists.
CEOs are being hailed--and hailing themselves--as guardians of democracy. That's after saying they will no longer donate to the 147 Republican members of Congress who objected to the certification of Biden electors, on the basis of Trump's lies about widespread fraud.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
Give me a break. For years, big corporations have been assaulting democracy with big money, drowning out the voices and needs of ordinary Americans, and fueling much of the anger and cynicism that opened the door to Trump in the first place.
Their assault hasn't been as violent as the pro-Trump mob who stormed the Capitol. And it's entirely legal. But it's arguably more damaging over the long term.
A study published a few years ago by two of America's most respected political scientists, Princeton professor Martin Gilens and Benjamin Page of Northwestern, concluded that the preferences of the average American "have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically nonsignificant impact upon public policy." Lawmakers respond almost exclusively to the moneyed interests--those with the most lobbying prowess and deepest pockets to bankroll campaigns.
So now, in the wake of Trump's calamitous exit and Biden's ascension, we're to believe CEOs care about democracy?
As Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, put it, "No one thought they were giving money to people who supported sedition."
Yet Dimon has been a leader of a more insidious form of sedition. He piloted the corporate lobbying campaign for the Trump tax cut, deploying a vast war chest of corporate donations.
For more than a decade Dimon has driven Wall Street's charge against stricter bank regulation, opening bipartisan doors in the Capitol with generous gifts from the Street. (Dimon calls himself a Democrat).
When Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg shut Trump's Facebook account, he declared: "You just can't have a functioning democracy without a peaceful transition of power."
But where was Zuckerberg's concern for a "functioning democracy" when he amplified Trump's bigotry and lies for over four years?
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
After taking down Trump's Twitter account, Jack Dorsey expressed discomfort about "the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation."
Spare me. Dorsey has fought all attempts to limit Twitter's power over the "global conversation." He shuttered Trump only after Democrats secured the presidency and control of the Senate.
Look, I'm glad CEOs are penalizing the 147 Republican seditionists and that big tech is starting to regulate social media content.
But don't confuse the avowed concerns of these CEOs about democracy with democracy itself. They aren't answerable to democracy. At most, they're answerable to big shareholders and institutional investors who don't give a fig as long as profits keep rolling in.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
And they would throw their weight behind the "For the People Act," the first bills of the new Congress, offering public financing of elections among other reforms.
Don't hold your breath.
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
Make no mistake: These CEOs and their corporations don't actually care about protecting democracy. They care only about protecting their bottom line.
The sudden lurch from Trump to Biden is generating vertigo all over Washington, including the so-called fourth branch of government--CEOs and their army of lobbyists.
CEOs are being hailed--and hailing themselves--as guardians of democracy. That's after saying they will no longer donate to the 147 Republican members of Congress who objected to the certification of Biden electors, on the basis of Trump's lies about widespread fraud.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
Give me a break. For years, big corporations have been assaulting democracy with big money, drowning out the voices and needs of ordinary Americans, and fueling much of the anger and cynicism that opened the door to Trump in the first place.
Their assault hasn't been as violent as the pro-Trump mob who stormed the Capitol. And it's entirely legal. But it's arguably more damaging over the long term.
A study published a few years ago by two of America's most respected political scientists, Princeton professor Martin Gilens and Benjamin Page of Northwestern, concluded that the preferences of the average American "have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically nonsignificant impact upon public policy." Lawmakers respond almost exclusively to the moneyed interests--those with the most lobbying prowess and deepest pockets to bankroll campaigns.
So now, in the wake of Trump's calamitous exit and Biden's ascension, we're to believe CEOs care about democracy?
As Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, put it, "No one thought they were giving money to people who supported sedition."
Yet Dimon has been a leader of a more insidious form of sedition. He piloted the corporate lobbying campaign for the Trump tax cut, deploying a vast war chest of corporate donations.
For more than a decade Dimon has driven Wall Street's charge against stricter bank regulation, opening bipartisan doors in the Capitol with generous gifts from the Street. (Dimon calls himself a Democrat).
When Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg shut Trump's Facebook account, he declared: "You just can't have a functioning democracy without a peaceful transition of power."
But where was Zuckerberg's concern for a "functioning democracy" when he amplified Trump's bigotry and lies for over four years?
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
After taking down Trump's Twitter account, Jack Dorsey expressed discomfort about "the power an individual or corporation has over a part of the global public conversation."
Spare me. Dorsey has fought all attempts to limit Twitter's power over the "global conversation." He shuttered Trump only after Democrats secured the presidency and control of the Senate.
Look, I'm glad CEOs are penalizing the 147 Republican seditionists and that big tech is starting to regulate social media content.
But don't confuse the avowed concerns of these CEOs about democracy with democracy itself. They aren't answerable to democracy. At most, they're answerable to big shareholders and institutional investors who don't give a fig as long as profits keep rolling in.
If they were truly committed to democracy, CEOs would permanently cease corporate donations to all candidates, close their PACs, stop giving to secretive "dark money" groups, and discourage donations by their executives.
And they would throw their weight behind the "For the People Act," the first bills of the new Congress, offering public financing of elections among other reforms.
Don't hold your breath.
The fourth branch is already amassing a war chest to stop Joe Biden and the Democrats from raising corporate taxes, increasing the minimum wage, breaking up big tech, and strengthening labor unions.
Make no mistake: These CEOs and their corporations don't actually care about protecting democracy. They care only about protecting their bottom line.