Obama: We Must Stop the Corporate Takeover of Our Democracy

[California Girl]

We live in a REPUBLIC. If Obama doesn't know that, he shouldn't be running the fucking REPUBLIC.

One could point out the silliness of saying the job of the President is to "run the republic." But first one would have to give a shit about dissecting the minutia of another person's diction when their meaning is already obvious. Let's move past the colloquialisms and get back to the real point: should elections be for sale?

No. There should be no 'special interest group' other than 'We, the People'.... however, The POTUS should be smart enough to know what kind of country he's supposed to be leading.

 

[Missourian]

Obama on Thursday: "Yes, those damned corporation attempting to buy elections...it's evil."

Top Contributors to Barack Obama | OpenSecrets​

University of California $1,591,395
Goldman Sachs $994,795
Harvard University $854,747
Microsoft Corp $833,617
Google Inc $803,436
Citigroup Inc $701,290
JPMorgan Chase & Co $695,132
Time Warner $590,084
Sidley Austin LLP $588,598
Stanford University $586,557
National Amusements Inc $551,683
UBS AG $543,219
Wilmerhale Llp $542,618
Skadden, Arps et al $530,839
IBM Corp $528,822
Columbia University $528,302
Morgan Stanley $514,881
General Electric $499,130
US Government $494,820
Latham & Watkins $493,835

Obama on Saturday: "Allow me to clarify...it's evil NOW...before it was ok."
​

 

[Stephanie]

Obama on Thursday: "Yes, those damned corporation attempting to buy elections...it's evil."

Top Contributors to Barack Obama | OpenSecrets​

University of California $1,591,395
Goldman Sachs $994,795
Harvard University $854,747
Microsoft Corp $833,617
Google Inc $803,436
Citigroup Inc $701,290
JPMorgan Chase & Co $695,132
Time Warner $590,084
Sidley Austin LLP $588,598
Stanford University $586,557
National Amusements Inc $551,683
UBS AG $543,219
Wilmerhale Llp $542,618
Skadden, Arps et al $530,839
IBM Corp $528,822
Columbia University $528,302
Morgan Stanley $514,881
General Electric $499,130
US Government $494,820
Latham & Watkins $493,835

Obama on Saturday: "Allow me to clarify...it's evil NOW...before it was ok."
​

Hugo (Obama) is banking on us NOT knowing these things.

 

[boedicca]

The One's pontifications continue to be completely divorced from the reality of his own policies and programs.

If he really is opposed to Big Government Corporatism, then perhaps he should cease, desist, and unwind the bills and bail outs from his watch which shovel $Ts (Baracks!) into the coffers of Big Banks, Big Pharma, Big Insurance, Big Unions, Big Auto, and the Big Government/Big Union Cabals of State, Local, and County Governments.

 

[Sinatra]

Quality post - well done.

Hopefully some of the hooples in this little place will actually take the time to read it.

Obama once again misfires - displaying both ignorance and ineptitude.

He does that a lot lately...
___

Is the Obama starting to sound more and more like HUGO CHAVEZ?

SNIP:

By Doug Powers • August 21, 2010 05:21 PM **Written by Doug Powers

Here’s the eye-roller of the day from President Obama’s Saturday radio address. This was recorded Thursday at the White House due to a vacation on Martha’s Vineyard, which is the perfect command center from where to monitor the Iranians firing up their nuclear reactor (which is being overseen for safety by the people who brought the world Chernobyl — whew!).

Here’s part of Obama’s address:

As the political season heats up, Americans are already being inundated with the usual phone calls, mailings, and TV ads from campaigns all across the country. But this summer, they’re also seeing a flood of attack ads run by shadowy groups with harmless-sounding names. We don’t know who’s behind these ads and we don’t know who’s paying for them [the only time we shouldn't care who's paying for something is if that something is a mosque near ground zero -- DP].

The reason this is happening is because of a decision by the Supreme Court in the Citizens United case – a decision that now allows big corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money to influence our elections. They can buy millions of dollars worth of TV ads – and worst of all, they don’t even have to reveal who is actually paying for them. You don’t know if it’s a foreign-controlled corporation. You don’t know if it’s BP. You don’t know if it’s a big insurance company or a Wall Street Bank. A group can hide behind a phony name like “Citizens for a Better Future,” even if a more accurate name would be “Corporations for Weaker Oversight.”
[...]
Well, we cannot allow the corporate takeover of our democracy. So we’re going to continue to fight for reform and transparency. And I urge all of you to take up the same fight. Let’s challenge every elected official who benefits from these ads to defend this practice or join us in stopping it.

---------------------------
This is a Republic and not a Democracy, but that’s of little importance at this point because we’re getting bilked out of both just so they can be sure.

Naturally, labor unions don’t fall under the “corporations” umbrella, but they do their share of advertising — it’s just that most of it goes toward helping Democrats:

Since 1990, labor unions have contributed over $667 million in election campaigns in the United States, of which $614 million or 92 percent went to support Democratic candidates. In 2008, unions spent $74.5 million in campaign contributions, with $68.3 million going to the Democratic Party. Already, unions have contributed $6.5 million to the 2010 elections, and $6 million has gone to Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics in Washington, D.C.In ads sponsored by labor unions it isn’t always obvious that the ad is paid for at least in part by unions either. “Health Care for America Now” is just one example. Watch this ad from the 2008 campaign and see if it’s obvious that it’s paid for in part by the SEIU, AFSCME, NEA and UFCW.

And forget the “corporate takeover” nonsense. Ever since the Supreme Court ruling freed up corporate political spending, labor unions are still out-spending corporations:

read it all here and comments.
Michelle Malkin Obama: We Must Stop the Corporate Takeover of Our Democracy

 

[G.T.]

Is the Obama starting to sound more and more like HUGO CHAVEZ?

SNIP:

By Doug Powers • August 21, 2010 05:21 PM **Written by Doug Powers

Here’s the eye-roller of the day from President Obama’s Saturday radio address. This was recorded Thursday at the White House due to a vacation on Martha’s Vineyard, which is the perfect command center from where to monitor the Iranians firing up their nuclear reactor (which is being overseen for safety by the people who brought the world Chernobyl — whew!).

Here’s part of Obama’s address:

As the political season heats up, Americans are already being inundated with the usual phone calls, mailings, and TV ads from campaigns all across the country. But this summer, they’re also seeing a flood of attack ads run by shadowy groups with harmless-sounding names. We don’t know who’s behind these ads and we don’t know who’s paying for them [the only time we shouldn't care who's paying for something is if that something is a mosque near ground zero -- DP].

The reason this is happening is because of a decision by the Supreme Court in the Citizens United case – a decision that now allows big corporations to spend unlimited amounts of money to influence our elections. They can buy millions of dollars worth of TV ads – and worst of all, they don’t even have to reveal who is actually paying for them. You don’t know if it’s a foreign-controlled corporation. You don’t know if it’s BP. You don’t know if it’s a big insurance company or a Wall Street Bank. A group can hide behind a phony name like “Citizens for a Better Future,” even if a more accurate name would be “Corporations for Weaker Oversight.”
[...]
Well, we cannot allow the corporate takeover of our democracy. So we’re going to continue to fight for reform and transparency. And I urge all of you to take up the same fight. Let’s challenge every elected official who benefits from these ads to defend this practice or join us in stopping it.

---------------------------
This is a Republic and not a Democracy, but that’s of little importance at this point because we’re getting bilked out of both just so they can be sure.

Naturally, labor unions don’t fall under the “corporations” umbrella, but they do their share of advertising — it’s just that most of it goes toward helping Democrats:

Since 1990, labor unions have contributed over $667 million in election campaigns in the United States, of which $614 million or 92 percent went to support Democratic candidates. In 2008, unions spent $74.5 million in campaign contributions, with $68.3 million going to the Democratic Party. Already, unions have contributed $6.5 million to the 2010 elections, and $6 million has gone to Democrats, according to the Center for Responsive Politics in Washington, D.C.
In ads sponsored by labor unions it isn’t always obvious that the ad is paid for at least in part by unions either. “Health Care for America Now” is just one example. Watch this ad from the 2008 campaign and see if it’s obvious that it’s paid for in part by the SEIU, AFSCME, NEA and UFCW.

And forget the “corporate takeover” nonsense. Ever since the Supreme Court ruling freed up corporate political spending, labor unions are still out-spending corporations:

read it all here and comments.
Michelle Malkin Obama: We Must Stop the Corporate Takeover of Our Democracy

You'll go on record and be so naive as to say that you don't think Politicians are bought and paid for?

 

[G.T.]

Obama's bought and paid for also, btw.

 

[loosecannon]

Well, we cannot allow the corporate takeover of our democracy. So we’re going to continue to fight for reform and transparency. And I urge all of you to take up the same fight. Let’s challenge every elected official who benefits from these ads to defend this practice or join us in stopping it.

[/QUOTE]

I agree with him, but I don't give a shit because I now that the ONLY reason why Obama is concerned for our nation in this instance is because he prefers the two party duopoly and the usual cast of power brokers who monopolized political power in his nation for the past several decades.

IOW Obama doesn't object on principle. He objects for convenience.

And in 2012 this will effect him personally.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

What we need to stop is the government take over of our "democracy."

 

[loosecannon]

What we need to stop is the government take over of our "democracy."

do you really mean that? I mean it sounds a lot like "keep your government hands off my Social Security!".

IMO we need to keep the political party's hands off of our democracy.

And for the semantics freaks we took some big steps from republic toward democracy when we allowed everybody a vote and adopted ballot initiatives at the state level.

We are somewhere between the two, not one or the other. Just like we are also somewhere between socialism, oligarchy, monarchy, commyism, fascism , anarcho syndicalism and republic.

All of these governmental forms are hypotheticals, there has never been an example of a pure form of any of them.

 

[The Rabbi]

Lobbyists spent $3.5 billion lobbying last year. And that's understating because it doesn't include the lawyers who lobby but aren't registered as lobbyists. Most of that was underwritten by corporations.

The total amount spent by the Chamber of Commerce alone was more than all the Congressional resources combined.

OK. And? Congresspeople make laws that will drop millions of dollars in someone's pocket, regardless of which version is passed. Is the right to petition the government suddenly revoked? Is the right to engage in political speech suddenly limited only to unions? No, I don't think so.
Here's Obama with Immelt, CEO of GE:

Here he is with Google CEO Eric Schmidt and other CEOs of corporate America.

Etc etc.
Barack Obama is the biggest hypocrite to walk the planet. And the leftists here fall for it everytime.

 

[Mr. Shaman]

So can we assume then that you're in favor of the corporate takeover of our democracy?

I'm thinkin' 8 YEARS, of that, was PLENTY!!!!!

​

 

[Avatar4321]

Id like to stop the politician takeover of our Republic. Don't really care if people make money. Stop trying to infringe on their rights and they won't want to control the politicians doing so.

 

[Mr. Shaman]

Id like to stop the politician takeover of our Republic. Don't really care if people make money. Stop trying to infringe on their rights and they won't want to control the politicians doing so.

Whew!!!!

THAT doesn't even qualify as TAP-DANCING!!!!!!!!!!!!!

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!​

 

[Avatar4321]

Well, it's probably good that it doesn't qualify as tap dancing, because I am not tap dancing.

I could just as easily say about your post that it didn't qualify as a coherant thought, but I don't think you were trying to make one.

 

[uscitizen]

Obama is part of the problem on corporations taking over the government. Any soulution he presents will be an empty one.