- The 28 House members who lobbied the Federal Communications Commission to drop net neutrality this week have received more than twice the amount in campaign contributions from the broadband sector than the average for all House members.
- Republicans received, on average, $59,812 from the industry over the two-year period compared to $13,640 for Democrats
- Greg Walden (R-OR) was the top sector recipient, netting more than $109,000
- Boehner received $75,450
Is your representative on the list?
The short answer is: 1 The Constitution guarantees the right of people to petition the government. 2 The Constitution guarantees the right of people to free speech. 3 The Supreme Court recognizes campaign contributions as speech. 4 The Supreme Court recognizes corporations as "people." Ergo, corporations have the "right" to petition the government, and to provide campaign contributions, and theoretically the two are unrelated. Oh, it gets better. In 2009, Boehner, who is now Speaker of the House, handed out lobbyist checks on the House floor immediately before a vote. I would argue it isn't, by definition.Could someone explain to me how this is legal
how this is legal in a democracy?
You have to change your frame of reference. You are a Senator, I'm a lobbyist. We both want the same thing right? More protection against those evil hackers, a more secure internet, (No more of those 'trolls' making a mess of your attempts at internet-advertising), and of course the unspoken desire for more profit. So let's go out to lunch and talk about these things, weekly. No no, I got the bill, don't worry about it. Senator, you really seem like you know what's going on, my firm would like to make a small donation to make sure that straight shooters like you don't have to worry about funding your next campaign. (It's what, 2 years away? 4? Coming up anyway) Thanks so much for coming out with me, I'll see you again next week, tee time is at 1.
The problem with this situation, is that corporations are not people. They are representatives for their owners, the wealthy. A government in which corporations vote is not a Democracy, it is a Plutocracy.You are a Senator, I'm a lobbyist. We both want the same thing right?
Here is SMBC's explanation of how this is legal: http://www.smbc-comics.com/?id=3344 A (bad) analogy would be to how in some East Slavic countries you tip your waitress before you get served.