Democracy Under Attack Research Paper

1000 Words4 Pages
English 120 3 November 2012 Democracy under Attack: Repercussions of the Corporate State Since the inception of congress the ideals and principles of the grand social experiment known as the United States have been guided by their legislation. These tenets have helped shape the fabric of our culture and way of life and although not perfect have proven to work over the test of time. Unfortunately, the issue of overt corruption that has seeped into congress presently is something that our founding fathers could never have envisioned when laying the framework of our constitution. To truly understand how the wheels of democracy are greased by the fat of capitalism, the incestuous relationship between corporate…show more content…
Initially as they become elected with the most altruistic of intentions it seems as if they sincerely believe that they are on the side the people, but the machination of Washington politics tends to slowly exact its toll while they serve their term in office. What drives this machine is money and lots of it, as the amount to run and keep their position is growing exponentially every year. In order to preserve their job while in congress concessions must be made and at the heart of these concessions is basically condoned bribery. In So Much Damn Money: the Triumph of Lobbying and the Corrosion of American Government, author Robert Kaiser quotes Democratic congressman Leon Panetta saying that “ legalized bribery has become part of the culture of how this place operates[ todays House and Senate members] rarely legislate; they basically follow around the money”. Keep in mind that congressman Panetta was referring to his term in office that ended in 1997 which reinforces how ingrained the practice of money pandering has become within congress as well as showcasing that this practice is not new by any means. Essentially the first job of any politician elected to congress is to get reelected, which means…show more content…
In a nutshell, this epitomizes how corporate capitalism has become hopelessly intertwined with democracy to the point that it is difficult to approximate where one ends and the other begins. In conclusion serving in Congress is an honor, not a career. Our founding fathers envisioned citizen legislators who under the obligation of civic duty were given the opportunity to serve their countrymen and when their term was up they returned home. This ideal seems quaint when compared with current day career politicians who do nothing but lower Americans faith in the ability of their own government by way of endless scandals and investigations. The machinery of corruption can be overhauled within congress but that entails changing long held fundamental concepts as to who “we the people” truly means. This process could be enacted towards making change from within possible when the incentive to help ones country is far removed from the lure of financial gain, because governing people can

More about Democracy Under Attack Research Paper

Open Document