Hullabaloo

Saturday, May 24, 2008

 
Cheap Insurance

by digby


Glenn Greenwald writes today about all the money the telcoms have spent on lobbying this year, (quite a bit more, as it turns out, than the year before if they stay on pace.)

Just in the first three months of 2008, recent lobbyist disclosure statements reveal that AT&T spent $5.2 million in lobbyist fees (putting it well ahead of its 2007 pace, when it spent just over $17 million). In the first quarter of 2008, Verizon spent $4.8 million on lobbyist fees, while Comcast spent $2.6 million. So in the first three months of this year, those three telecoms -- which would be among the biggest beneficiaries of telecom amnesty (right after the White House) -- spent a combined total of almost $13 million on lobbyists. They're on pace to spend more than $50 million on lobbying this year -- just those three companies.

13 million bucks is a lot of money. But as I read the numbers, I was struck, once again, by what an incredible bargain these corporations get when they buy off politicians. This money wouldn't even cover executive perks. Verizon has a 1.2 billion dollar advertising budget. Comcast paid 2o million to its CEO alone last year. Here's the deal AT&Ts CEO got:

AT&T Chairman and CEO Randall Stephenson earned about $18 million last year-about $1.2 million in salary and the rest in performance-based bonuses and stock awards, according to BusinessWeek, which does not rely on company figures and uses its own methods to calculate such things. The non-salary compensation included more than $89,000 worth of personal use of a company plane, more than $15,000 for a home security system and more than $10,000 for a club membership.

Lobbying and campaign contributions are tip money to these people and yet politicians are so beholden to them for these financial crumbs that they sell out the American people and the constitution for them. Corporations get the best bargain in the world.

With respect to the FISA cases, they could easily afford to shoulder the financial burden of litigation. It's hard to imagine that they are so exposed that there is any serious financial liability. But why should they pay for lawyers and risk some public relations fallout if they can just throw some chicken feed at the problem and let their political puppets take all the heat? It's hardly even noticeable to the bottom line.

This problem is systemic. We know that Big Money will always have an outsized influence in politics. It's just the way of the world. But one of the most hopeful things to come along in many moons is the revolution in individual donations made possible by the internet. If we can find a way to systematically empower millions of individuals to engage in politics with small donations, Big Business will automatically lose at least some of its clout. They will always find a way to spend money to their advantage, but it will at least be mitigated by the collective will of millions of citizens who are putting not only their votes, but their money, where their mouths are. That really is revolutionary.

If you feel like signing on to the revolution yourself, you can always donate a couple of bucks to Blue America candidates. They are all progressives who would be thrilled not to have to dial for dollars from rich elites who love to buy politicians cheaply and brag about it to their friends.

If you'd like to join in a chat with one them, Regina Thomas from Georgia, is over at FDL right now taking questions.


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digby 5/24/2008 11:20:00 AM |