Nation on the Take

Money and politics have become synonymous.  Politicians spend that majority of their time raising money, (which they claim they hate) while the cost of campaigns escalates and more money is needed and more money needs to be raised.  And where does that money come from….not usually from small contributions, but from large and vested special interests.  

The result is a system that is inherently corrupt and tilted toward big money.  Even when it is practiced by the most sincere and dedicated elected officials.  

We all seem to know this...what we don't see as clearly is the way in which this simple, fundamental and relatively recent development is responsible for so much that’s wrong with our democracy.   Our wealth gap, political gridlock, inaction on some of our most pressing environmental issues, 

For focusing on this core idea, Bernie Sanders has been accused of being a single issues candidate.  But no matter where you stand on Sanders, it’s increasingly clear that this single issues is the foundational idea underlying the paralysis of 21st century America.

This is the issue that Wendell Potter and Nick Penniman take head on in Nation on the Take: How Big Money Corrupts Our Democracy and What We Can Do About It

My conversation with Potter and Penniman: