Commentary – The Best Democracy Money Can Buy

By Armine Koundakjian
Yes, this is how low we have stooped. But don’t be surprised—this is what happens when politicians are for sale. Let me provide some background. Back in 2010, the Supreme Court made it legal to bribe politicians by equating money with free speech. Thanks to the groundwork laid by Citizens United, corporations were granted personhood, meaning there’s no limit to how much money they can contribute or where it comes from. Much of this money is dark money—untraceable and unaccountable. The most corrupt branch of the U.S. government, the Supreme Court, also gave Donald Trump immunity from wrongdoing. This proves what many in the Black community have known for years: rich white men are above the law. They can get away with anything. Meanwhile, our politicians have become telemarketers, fundraising. As of the last count, close to $10 billion was spent on this year’s election alone. This money goes straight to the coffers of major media outlets—NBC, CBS, CNN, FOX—and in turn, they use it to fuel the next election cycle with more ads. This cycle persists because the same corporations that benefit from it don’t want change. As long as dark money and outside influences continue to shape elections, the system will remain broken. Efforts to create publicly -funded campaign contributions have been made in the past, but they have failed. Those who make large political contributions expect a return on their investment—it’s payback time. Currently, the Supreme Court is dominated by 3 Trump-appointed justices, many of whom are followers of Opus Dei, a right-wing, authoritarian Christian institution. And now, a three-times indicted, twice-impeached, a man convicted for sexual assault has managed to regain the White House—thanks to powerful forces who prefer an incompetent figurehead they can manipulate for their own anti-democratic purposes.