4 ms·
The primary problem is that it's not illegal for politicians to lie to the electorate. Without solving that problem, we will always have sub-par leadership and
by cabaalis 7y ago
The primary problem is that it's not illegal for politicians to lie to the electorate. Without solving that problem, we will always have sub-par leadership and questions about what is or is not a valid advertisement.
In official capacity (under oath) it's illegal for us to lie to them. In their official capacity (under oath of office) they get to lie all day long, straight through their teeth. CEOs can't defraud their shareholders, but politicians can do so every day of their lives.
- nidificate 7y agoOften times in politics, what is a "lie" is more a matter of opinion rather than fact. Who gets to be the arbiter of truth?
- colejohnson66 7y agoIn theory, the electorate. They vote out politicians who lie. In practice, people don’t seem to care.
- ep103 7y agoIf only we had some sort of system, where individuals could be sued for making damaging statements. Maybe each side could present their case, and a jury of their peers could be the ultimate deciders.
- Aperocky 7y agoThat system certainly doesn't sound like facebook to me.
- mattnewton 7y agoIt's not illegal to lie but it is required to attribute that lie to the political campaign making it per the FEC's attribution rules, and the hope is that people will be able to spot lies and call them out. IANAL but this is the general idea as I understand it. To me, the problem is these kinds of sponsored posts undermine that by not enforcing the attribution, by being more ephemeral than TV or print ads, and by allowing specific enough targeting to exclude anyone who might call it out.
- tomohawk 7y agoMembers of Congress, while in Congress, can literally say anything they want to with complete immunity.