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“AOC observed not too long ago that before being elected to congress, she expected the corruption to be transactional, i. e. money for something in explicit qui
by Ididntdothis 6y ago
“AOC observed not too long ago that before being elected to congress, she expected the corruption to be transactional, i. e. money for something in explicit quid-pro-quo. As she noticed, lobbying in the US is really more of a social process, where politicians aren't directly bought, but spent a lot of time with lobbyists. And familiarity, as always, breeds sympathy.“
I think this is much worse in the long run. The people who are lobbied and the people who lobby become the same.
- mc32 6y agoSo the solution is don’t have human relationships? Some this can’t be avoided, some of it can, despite relationships, if people stick to principles and also balance the requirements of all their constituencies.
- Ididntdothis 6y agoYou can have relationships but as a lawmaker you have to be careful who you associate with. During the 2008 crisis it seemed pretty obvious that a lot of people in Congress and at the Fed felt more affinity towards bankers vs other citizens. Or the current administration seems to talk only to business people and not other groups like unions about the economy. The lack of balance is a problem.
- ardy42 6y ago>> As she noticed, lobbying in the US is really more of a social process, where politicians aren't directly bought, but spent a lot of time with lobbyists. And familiarity, as always, breeds sympathy. > So the solution is don’t have human relationships? No. The solution is probably that the politicians need to be more choosy about who they form human relationships with. They should probably exchange all the time they spend with paid lobbyists for more time with their constituents and relatively unbiased experts.