Over at Medium, Lawrence Lessig has launched "Equal Citizens, A conversation about (finally) achieving political equality." Go Lessig!
From his post "Frodo Baggins for President:"
To the surprise of many, money in politics is becoming an increasingly important issue in the debate over the upcoming presidential election. From Republicans dancing in billionaire primaries, to the newly minted reformer, Hillary Clinton, openly coordinating with a so-called "independent" SuperPAC, it is beginning to strike practically everyone as completely obvious that the existing system has got to go. Money is going to "destroy the political process," as Republican Lindsey Graham lamented at a New Hampshire event. "[T]he most influential people in the country are going to be the ones with the most money." Going to be?
Yet despite the ruckus, it's almost certain this issue will disappear come 2016, because neither side has an interest in reminding voters of the perceived hypocrisy in their own support for "reform."
Unfairly (in my view) but unavoidably (in the view of the experts), voters will not find either of the leading candidates credible on reform. Can Clinton really rail against the influence of money in politics while reporters are asking again and again about the influence of money in the decisions of the State Department? Or will Bush really want to attack the power of "cronies" while fighting off questions about his own shilling for for-profit education firms?
This is not a fight that either side can win, which is why after the primaries, both sides will happily let the issue fade away.
Equal Citizens (Medium)
