Leaked documents reveal secretive influence of corporate cash on politics
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Source: The Guardian
The pervasive influence of corporate cash in the democratic process, and the extraordinary lengths to which politicians, lobbyists and even judges go to solicit money, are laid bare in sealed court documents leaked to the Guardian.
The John Doe files amount to 1,500 pages of largely unseen material gathered in evidence by prosecutors investigating alleged irregularities in political fundraising. Last year the Wisconsin supreme court ordered that all the documents should be destroyed, though a set survived that has now been obtained by the news organisation.
The files open a window on a world that is very rarely glimpsed by the public, in which millions of dollars are secretly donated by major corporations and super-wealthy individuals to third-party groups in an attempt to sway elections. They speak to a visceral theme of the 2016 presidential cycle: the distortion of American democracy by big business that has been slammed by both Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders.
In a case that is the subject of a petition currently in front of the US supreme court, five Wisconsin prosecutors carried out a deep investigation into what they suspected were criminal campaign-finance violations by the campaign committee of Scott Walker, Wisconsin governor and former Republican presidential candidate. Known as the John Doe investigation, the inquiry has been a lightning rod for bitter disputes between conservatives and progressives for years
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/sep/14/corporate-cash-john-doe-files-scott-walker-wisconsin
mountain grammy
(26,568 posts)Frustratedlady
(16,254 posts)I hope something comes of this.
NWCorona
(8,541 posts)mopinko
(69,804 posts)cant say as i have ever heard such a thing.
William Seger
(10,742 posts)ronnie624
(5,764 posts)The bribery is probably all technically legal.
The article mentions the pervasive influence of money over the "democratic process", but anyone should be able to see that a quasi-legal system of bribery is inconsistent with democratic principles.
cstanleytech
(26,080 posts)soliciting money at one time or another throughout their career and are essentially covering their own ass.
ewagner
(18,964 posts)....this Guardian article sheds important light on the web of corruption that is the Wisconsin Republican Party...
The Repubs OWN all three branches of government and control (via advertising $$$) a good chunk of the media...
breaking this stranglehold on the State cannot be done from within anymore ...it needs the U.S. Supreme court.
NWCorona
(8,541 posts)turbinetree
(24,632 posts)pretty much explains two "boys" and there foundations and how they have now expanded into the university system to expand that wonk message.
And just think Walker and his state run cronies of girls and boys in all three branches of government eviscerated the accountability board, just so the public can't hold this criminal accountable, and then the "court" of the state is really corrupt. This speaks volumes as why there should be public financing for running for an office, at both the state and local and federal level
LakeArenal
(28,713 posts)Ummm....not so secret.. Should say, proof of influence of corporate cash on politics.
Ligyron
(7,592 posts)The Guardian mentions in the article that they exist - all 1500 pages. So where can we read some of them?
OTOH, maybe they just got them and haven't read through them yet to find the juicy ones.
lutefisk
(3,974 posts)Here is the main document link from the article: LINK
There are plenty of juicy ones...
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)Naturally, the Guardian couldn't resist taking a subtle anti-Hillary shot in the third graf
etherealtruth
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