With Clinton at Helm, Democratic Party Again a 'Plaything of the Super-Rich'
Published on
Wednesday, August 03, 2016
by
Common Dreams
With Clinton at Helm, Democratic Party Again a 'Plaything of the Super-Rich'
Back-to-back fundraisers with Hollywood elite and fossil fuel industry hope
to boost an already sizable war chest
by
Lauren McCauley, staff writer
Vice presidential candidate Sen. Tim Kaine waves with his presidential
running mate Hillary Clinton after she introduced him during a campaign
rally in Miami on July 23. (Photo: Scott Audette/ Reuters)
It appears that nothing is holding her back now that Hillary Clinton has
officially become the Democratic nominee for president. With "cash machine"
Tim Kaine by her side, the Democratic ticket's fundraising operation is in
full swing, and the money-Big Money-is pouring in.
On Tuesday, the campaign announced a record take of $90 million last month
for the candidate and the Democratic Party, not including that brought in by
the Super PACs supporting her bid. Republican nominee Donald Trump raised a
reported $80 million last month.
According to CNN, "Clinton will look to match her July haul with a series of
August fundraisers, including star studded late-August events hosted by
Oscar-winning actors and tech billionaires like Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple."
No longer bird-dogged by climate activists for accepting fossil fuel
industry dollars, on Tuesday Clinton attended a private fundraiser in Aspen
reportedly hosted by Charif Souki, son of the founder of liquefied natural
gas company Cheniere Energy. CNN Politics producer Dan Merica estimated that
the nominee raked in $650,000, "but likely more," based on attendance at the
event, where dinner plates reportedly cost $10,000 to $50,000.
And on Monday, the former secretary of state headlined an intimate reception
hosted by Warren Buffett's daughter Susie in Omaha, Nebraska-attended by 15
people at $100,000 a pop.
Kaine, described by Politico as "one of the Democratic Party's most powerful
fundraisers," is doing his part, too. On Tuesday, the vice presidential
nominee attended his first fundraising event in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Hosted by "Democratic mega-donor Sharon and Mitchell Berger," CNN reported a
haul of "at least $300,000, according to attendee figures and ticket
prices."
According to Politico, the Virginia senator is "expected to play a major
behind-the-scenes role on the money circuit," and has 10 more events
scheduled for the next 10 days.
"Kaine won't just serve as a shiny new attraction," writes Gabriel
Debenedetti. "His talent at the art of big donor maintenance dates back to
his time running the national party, and fundraisers close to the campaign
are hoping his position as a full-fledged member of President Barack Obama's
finance circles will help pull any remaining skeptical Obama-era tycoons off
the bench for Clinton."
Howard Wallach, chair of the Democratic Party in Pitkin County, where the
Aspen fundraiser was held, told the Aspen Daily News that such high-priced
events "are a necessary part of politics now in the Citizens United world."
Clinton herself has promised to introduce a constitutional amendment to
"overturn Citizens United" during her first 30 days as president, saying she
will "fight for other progressive reforms, including small-dollar matching
and disclosure requirements."
But as the Center for Public Integrity's Carrie Levine and Michael Beckel
recently pointed out, that is not stopping the nominee, nor the Democratic
establishment, from aggressively courting corporations and the mega-rich.
Cataloging the endless displays of corporate sponsorship, high falutin
luncheons, and other examples of how last week's Democratic National
Convention in Philadelphia was ultimately a "playground," for lobbyists,
Super PACs, and outside political groups, they write: "Democrats have a
light year to go before ever reaching that goal."
Further, they note that the "Democrats' week in Philadelphia also
highlighted other, more traditional avenues of big-money influence that have
made a comeback of sorts during 2016. Democrats this election cycle reversed
an Obama-era ban on accepting lobbyist and corporate political action
committee contributions for use by the Democratic National Committee and
Democratic National Convention. Freed from restriction, professional
political influencers may fully participate in a parade of perks, parties
and access opportunities."
Underscoring how murky the world of politics and big-money influence is now,
an investigation by the Sunlight Foundation published last week found that
at least 63 of the Democratic superdelegates are also registered lobbyists.
"For all of the Democrats' denunciation of Citizens United and the role of
big money, that is what saved Clinton in this campaign, and the fat cats
toasting over at the Ritz-Carlton were delighted with the outcome," Robert
Scheer wrote this week.
"It is the Democrats, first Barack Obama and now Clinton, who turned their
backs on public financing because, thanks to their sellout to Wall Street,
they can look to big money to smash populist sentiment, as expressed so
dramatically this time by the incredible outpouring of small contributions
that financed the Bernie Sanders campaign," Scheer continued, referring to
the notorious $27 donation average boasted by the Sanders campaign.
"Follow the money," he added, "and it is obvious that the Democratic Party
as much as the GOP is now the plaything of the super-rich."
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
License
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With Clinton at Helm, Democratic Party Again a 'Plaything of the Super-Rich'
Published on
Wednesday, August 03, 2016
by
Common Dreams
With Clinton at Helm, Democratic Party Again a 'Plaything of the Super-Rich'
Back-to-back fundraisers with Hollywood elite and fossil fuel industry hope
to boost an already sizable war chest
by
Lauren McCauley, staff writer
. 80 Comments
.
. Vice presidential candidate Sen. Tim Kaine waves with his
presidential running mate Hillary Clinton after she introduced him during a
campaign rally in Miami on July 23. (Photo: Scott Audette/ Reuters)
. It appears that nothing is holding her back now that Hillary Clinton
has officially become the Democratic nominee for president. With "cash
machine" Tim Kaine by her side, the Democratic ticket's fundraising
operation is in full swing, and the money-Big Money-is pouring in.
. On Tuesday, the campaign announced a record take of $90 million last
month for the candidate and the Democratic Party, not including that brought
in by the Super PACs supporting her bid. Republican nominee Donald Trump
raised a reported $80 million last month.
. According to CNN, "Clinton will look to match her July haul with a
series of August fundraisers, including star studded late-August events
hosted by Oscar-winning actors and tech billionaires like Tim Cook, the CEO
of Apple."
. No longer bird-dogged by climate activists for accepting fossil fuel
industry dollars, on Tuesday Clinton attended a private fundraiser in Aspen
reportedly hosted by Charif Souki, son of the founder of liquefied natural
gas company Cheniere Energy. CNN Politics producer Dan Merica estimated that
the nominee raked in $650,000, "but likely more," based on attendance at the
event, where dinner plates reportedly cost $10,000 to $50,000.
And on Monday, the former secretary of state headlined an intimate reception
hosted by Warren Buffett's daughter Susie in Omaha, Nebraska-attended by 15
people at $100,000 a pop.
Kaine, described by Politico as "one of the Democratic Party's most powerful
fundraisers," is doing his part, too. On Tuesday, the vice presidential
nominee attended his first fundraising event in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Hosted by "Democratic mega-donor Sharon and Mitchell Berger," CNN reported a
haul of "at least $300,000, according to attendee figures and ticket
prices."
According to Politico, the Virginia senator is "expected to play a major
behind-the-scenes role on the money circuit," and has 10 more events
scheduled for the next 10 days.
"Kaine won't just serve as a shiny new attraction," writes Gabriel
Debenedetti. "His talent at the art of big donor maintenance dates back to
his time running the national party, and fundraisers close to the campaign
are hoping his position as a full-fledged member of President Barack Obama's
finance circles will help pull any remaining skeptical Obama-era tycoons off
the bench for Clinton."
Howard Wallach, chair of the Democratic Party in Pitkin County, where the
Aspen fundraiser was held, told the Aspen Daily News that such high-priced
events "are a necessary part of politics now in the Citizens United world."
Clinton herself has promised to introduce a constitutional amendment to
"overturn Citizens United" during her first 30 days as president, saying she
will "fight for other progressive reforms, including small-dollar matching
and disclosure requirements."
But as the Center for Public Integrity's Carrie Levine and Michael Beckel
recently pointed out, that is not stopping the nominee, nor the Democratic
establishment, from aggressively courting corporations and the mega-rich.
Cataloging the endless displays of corporate sponsorship, high falutin
luncheons, and other examples of how last week's Democratic National
Convention in Philadelphia was ultimately a "playground," for lobbyists,
Super PACs, and outside political groups, they write: "Democrats have a
light year to go before ever reaching that goal."
Further, they note that the "Democrats' week in Philadelphia also
highlighted other, more traditional avenues of big-money influence that have
made a comeback of sorts during 2016. Democrats this election cycle reversed
an Obama-era ban on accepting lobbyist and corporate political action
committee contributions for use by the Democratic National Committee and
Democratic National Convention. Freed from restriction, professional
political influencers may fully participate in a parade of perks, parties
and access opportunities."
Underscoring how murky the world of politics and big-money influence is now,
an investigation by the Sunlight Foundation published last week found that
at least 63 of the Democratic superdelegates are also registered lobbyists.
"For all of the Democrats' denunciation of Citizens United and the role of
big money, that is what saved Clinton in this campaign, and the fat cats
toasting over at the Ritz-Carlton were delighted with the outcome," Robert
Scheer wrote this week.
"It is the Democrats, first Barack Obama and now Clinton, who turned their
backs on public financing because, thanks to their sellout to Wall Street,
they can look to big money to smash populist sentiment, as expressed so
dramatically this time by the incredible outpouring of small contributions
that financed the Bernie Sanders campaign," Scheer continued, referring to
the notorious $27 donation average boasted by the Sanders campaign.
"Follow the money," he added, "and it is obvious that the Democratic Party
as much as the GOP is now the plaything of the super-rich."
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
License
