Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Mitt Romney's taxes

The Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Indecision 2012 - I Know What You Did Last Quarter
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This sums it up pretty well, don't you think? Unfortunately, the rest of us just don't have enough high-powered lobbyists.

Incidentally, Elizabeth Warren was Jon's guest last night. She's really impressive. If you're interested, here's the interview (Part 1 and Part 2).

These are a couple of lines that really got me: "It comes out that 30 of the largest companies in the United States are now spending more on lobbying than they pay in federal taxes." ... "Right now, the people who are sucking up the real resources in this country are the people who can hire the lobbyists."

This is all because money has become all-powerful in our political system - and even more-so since that lunatic Citizens United decision from our Republican Supreme Court. Heck, billionaire Stuart Adelson's money has kept Newt Gringrich's presidential campaign afloat almost single-handedly. What kind of influence do you think he's buying with that?

But libertarians completely miss the boat, too. They fail to remember that we're social animals. We're all in this together. Elizabeth Warren is absolutely right about this: "Government is what we do together. Government is the part that lets us come together and build the basic conditions - the infrastructure, the education, the research - the basic pieces together that let us build a future for ourselves and for our kids."

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