[Dialogue] Emailing: Who's Paying for the Conventions - CommonDreams.org.htm

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Published on Thursday, July 24, 2008 by TruthDig.com
<http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20080723_whos_paying_for_the_convention
s/>  

Who's Paying for the Conventions?

by Amy Goodman

The election season is heating up, with back-to-back conventions approaching
- the Democrats in Denver followed by the Republicans in St. Paul, Minn. The
conventions have become elaborate, expensive marketing events, where the
party's "presumptive" nominee has a coronation with much fanfare, confetti
and wall-to-wall media coverage. What people don't know is the extent to
which major corporations fund the conventions, pouring tens of millions of
dollars into a little-known loophole in the campaign-finance system.

Stephen Weissman of the nonpartisan Campaign Finance Institute explains the
unconventional funding:

"It's totally prohibited to give unlimited contributions to political
parties. It's totally prohibited for a corporation or a union to just go
right into its treasury and give money to political parties. Yet, under an
exemption that was created by the Federal Election Commission, which
essentially is made up of representatives of the two major parties, all of
this money can be given if it's given through a host committee under the
pretense that it's merely to promote the convention city."

According to CFI's new report, "Analysis of Convention Donors," since the
last presidential election, the corporations funding the conventions have
spent more than $1.1 billion lobbying the federal government. Add to it the
millions they pour into the conventions. Says Weissman: "In return for this
money, the parties, through the host committees, offer access to top
politicians, to the president, the future president, vice president, cabinet
officials, senators, congressmen. They promise these companies who are
giving that they will be able to not only get close to these people by
hosting receptions, by access to VIP areas, but they'll actually have
meetings with them."

Disclosure of what corporations are giving is not required until 60 days
after each convention, which is essentially Election Day, so there is no
time to challenge a candidate on particular corporate donors. Weissman
reports that most of the corporations that are giving to the convention
"host committees" also have serious business before the federal government.
Take AT&T, for example. Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com recently pointed out
that the Democratic conventioneers and registered media in attendance will
receive a tote bag prominently emblazoned with the AT&T logo. It's a perfect
metaphor for a much larger gift, the one Democrats and Republicans just gave
AT&T and other telecoms: retroactive immunity for spying on U.S. citizens.
While Sens. Russ Feingold and Chris Dodd fought the bill, Sen. Barack Obama,
until recently a staunch opponent of telecom immunity, reversed his position
and supported it, reneging on a pledge to filibuster. Perfect timing.

The conventions are also training grounds for the next generation of elected
officials. Many state legislators attend the conventions as delegates, where
they marinate in the ways of big-money politics. From the corporate parties
to the hospitality suites, they learn that there is nothing to be gained by
challenging the status quo.

Obama has sworn off special-interest and lobbying money for his campaign,
and he made historic strides in using the Internet to marshal millions of
small donors and amass a campaign war chest with $72 million in cash on hand
at the end of June. Yet the Denver convention is looking more and more like
business as usual. Weissman writes in his report, "Lavish conventions with
million-dollar podiums, fancy skyboxes and Broadway production teams are not
necessary to the democratic process."

What is necessary, Weissman says, is stripping soft money out of the
convention process: "Congress should pass a law that says no more soft money
for these conventions, no corporate treasury, union treasury, no unlimited
individual money. Instead, the parties - let's discard this host-committee
fiction - can go out there and ask people to help the convention, but with
the same limits where they're asking people to help them normally."

"Deep Throat" is said to have told Bob Woodward during Watergate to "follow
the money." It looks as if this summer you need only go to the Democratic
and Republican national conventions. It's time to close this loophole.

Amy Goodman is the host of "Democracy Now!," a daily international TV/radio
news hour airing on more than 700 stations in North America.

C 2008 Amy Goodman

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43 Comments so far 

1.	

	wilmoor July 24th, 2008 12:59 pm 

	One thing the ordinary person doesn't seem to grasp is that a
corporation without those at the bottom, doing all the work, bringing in all
the money, is like a car without an engine, or a human body without a heart
(a literal one).

2.	

	Arvy July 24th, 2008 1:07 pm 

	Does it matter? The entire exercise has become an anachronistic
charade in the post-political age
<http://www.counterpunch.org/bageant07242008.html>  upon which the USA has
now entered.

	The two primary features of the post political age are a politics
completely drained of all its contents and ability or willingness to be used
as an agent of change in social or economic policy, and its full
integrations into the world of American popular, consumer and entertainment
culture. To such an extent that there exists today a seamless web between
our political, economic, media and consumer cultures wherein the modes and
values of one are completely integrated and compatible with the others.

3.	

	Mordechai Shiblikov July 24th, 2008 1:31 pm 

	When I was younger, political conventions were broadcast in prime
time in their entirety. However, now that television news has become, like
almost all the rest of television, a blather meant solely to amuse your
boredom, the conventions - dull, bullshit ridden events about as amusing as
visiting a sick person in a hospital - are given short shrift. And it
doesn't matter in the least.

4.	

	tetti_tatti July 24th, 2008 1:36 pm 

	So AT&T promised Democrats millions for their convention if they let
the phone giant off the hook for spying on Americans illegally, which is
what happened.

	When will Democrats apologize to Nader?

	And why are Democrats still getting one single vote from anyone,
especially those who call themselves progressives?

5.	

	Arvy July 24th, 2008 1:44 pm 

	tetti_tatti: You're question about support for the Democrat agenda
and its presidential candidate is also answered by the "post-political age"
article linked above.

	At the time when the American military industrial complex is
despised around the world, he is a front man out of central casting which
will buy it more goodwill and new room to maneuver in the first 15 minutes
after being sworn in that John McCain could in the next 100 years.
[.]
Barack Obama is in short order a far more reassuring prospect for the
continued dominance of the financial elite than another four years of
neo-conservative rule which in an almost historically unique combination of
greed, ill will, incompetence and stupidity have brought the country to the
edge of disaster. Audacity yes, change hardly.

6.	

	Nathaniel Heidenheimer July 24th, 2008 1:46 pm 

	ATT-NSA

7.	

	Cedar July 24th, 2008 1:49 pm 

	Just another Politician Sale

8.	

	Juliania July 24th, 2008 1:57 pm 

	Yesterday I posted on a pbs forum that the thing for Independents to
do was to promptly change affiliation to Green, which I am doing. Golly gee,
I managed to shut down the whole system it would seem! (Power to the
people.) Bill Moyers did a classic piece on the conventions in '04 when NOW
was actually a public service program instead of a corporate front. Bravo,
Amy, keep it up.

9.	

	Jerry D. Rose July 24th, 2008 2:35 pm 

	Juliana (1:57), great idea, changing party affiliation to Green; a
way to "send a message" of a leftward swing in the country even if the
party-changer does the same old-same old choice between the "lesser evil" of
the two branches of the Corporacratic Party. 4 months ago I, a 50-year
yellow dog Democrat, changed registration to Green and "felt good" about it,
didn't even have to support Obama in order to get that feeling (see below
about politics and feeling good). So try it folks, you'll like it! (Giving a
couple of bucks to the Greens, who DONT get the corporate support about
which Amy Goodman is writing, is not a bad idea either. Cynthia McKinney is
actually struggling to raise $100,000!) 

	Arvy (1:07 and l:44), I missed that Counterpunch article you linked
in my morning surf. Very thought-provoking, highly recommended: Joe Bageant
reprint of a "deep throat" analysis of how as unlikely a vessel of political
leadership as Obama could have emerged as the President-apparent. When
consumerism becomes king of a culture, that power is reflected in giving us
an issue-less "post political" electoral system in which a candidate is sold
as a product who makes us "feel good." Hell you could build a college
seminar around this one article.

10.	

	BigDawgNC July 24th, 2008 2:46 pm 

	tetti_tatti :When will Democrats apologize to Nader?

	And why are Democrats still getting one single vote from anyone,
especially those who call themselves progressives? I'll tell u when the dems
will apologize.NEVER!!!! Because the big corporations that fund the party
wont let 'em.As for why progressive continue to vote Dem,I dunno.Maybe they
think the Party will change(yea right)or they are scared of another 2000? I
dont know why,but im one dem(well,former Dem)that wont get fooled again!

11.	

	hazmat July 24th, 2008 3:16 pm 

	"who's paying for the conventions?"

	we are. in blood.

12.	

	Arvy July 24th, 2008 3:34 pm 

	Jerry D. Rose July 24th, 2008 2:35 pm - "Hell you could build a
college seminar around this one article."

	Sure could. But, considering current "academic freedom" trends, any
such honest attempt to expose political realities would probably result in
loss of tenure.

	Sheldon Wolin's Inverted Totalitarianism
<http://www.thenation.com/doc/20030519/wolin>  is also well worth reading,
if you haven't already.

13.	

	kloro <http://tomspages.com>  July 24th, 2008 3:50 pm 

	the thing to keep in mind about this largesse is that it comes from
people who are no more loyal to this country than Osama Bin Laden.

14.	

	MariusP July 24th, 2008 5:37 pm 

	SO, Amy Goodman, who are you endorsing for President???

15.	

	Truthie July 24th, 2008 6:01 pm 

	Amy Goodman writes: "Disclosure of what corporations are giving is
not required until 60 days after each convention, which is essentially
Election Day, so there is no time to challenge a candidate on particular
corporate donors."

	This is a very misleading statement ! While exact numbers are indeed
hard to come by there are a number of groups doing excellent work on the
subject. Among the best is The Center for Responsive Politics who through
their Open Secrets Website have done the research to unmask the corporate
contributors hidden by Bundling. There list of Top 20 Contributors for Obama
and McCain can be found on their website.

	For Obama go to:
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008
<http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00009638>
&cid=N00009638

	For McCain go to :
http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?id=N00006424
<http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?id=N00006424&cycle2=2008&goBu
tt2.x=6&goButt2.y=10> &cycle2=2008&goButt2.x=6&goButt2.y=10

	Yes that right Obama has out raised McCain over 2 to 1 from the big
business interest in this country.

	So Amy..Stop leading people deeper into the fog !

16.	

	thaddeusstephens <http://politicsusaweb.com>  July 24th, 2008 6:45
pm 

	For myself, the whole political process at the highest level of
party 'elites' hobnobbing in Denver and St. Paul is the like looking at the
detritus in a forest floor; fallen molding leaves, broken twigs, and
scrambling of invertebrates. The main structure of American society, as the
comments above point out, are the lower 90% of the working folks who
struggle to get by every day. We are the majestic trees and the debris on
the forest floor are the so called 'elites.'

17.	

	TupeloGreens July 24th, 2008 6:48 pm 

	As a Green candidate for Congress in MS-01 for a Special Election, I
was invited to an AARP forum. In my closing remarks, I spoke out against
corporate campaign contributions. When it was the Republican and Democratic
candidates' turns, both took the time to note that corporations cannot give
money to federal campaigns. Of course, we all know that it's their PACs that
contribute, but it's all the same. How many average Americans know that?

	Transparency is good, but it's not enough. We need to eliminate the
influence of corporations and wealthy individuals through a carefully
designed system of limited contributions and public financing.
Unfortunately, the FEC is owned and operated by the two major parties, as is
the Congress. Change will not come from that direction.

	John M. Wages, Jr.
www.VoteJohnWages.com

18.	

	Thomas More July 24th, 2008 7:08 pm 

	Does it really matter?

19.	

	Siouxrose July 24th, 2008 7:16 pm 

	ARVY: Evocative posting and I read the link. Very interesting.

20.	

	Galen July 24th, 2008 7:51 pm 

	Who is paying for these political conventions?

	Simple.

	Who is on the S&P 500 index?

21.	

	Nannie July 24th, 2008 7:56 pm 

	.

	http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008
<http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/contrib.php?cycle=2008&cid=N00009638>
&cid=N00009638

	OBAMA TOP CONTRIBUTORS

	" You gotta dance with the one who brung ya " 

	.

22.	

	Nannie July 24th, 2008 7:57 pm 

	.OBAMA TOP CONTRIBUTORS

	Goldman Sachs $606,080
University of California $488,159
JPMorgan Chase & Co $378,357
Citigroup Inc $371,704
UBS AG $370,850
Lehman Brothers $333,310
National Amusements Inc $332,839
Harvard University $325,424
Google Inc $321,964
Sidley Austin LLP $307,345
Skadden, Arps et al $281,163
Morgan Stanley $274,463
Time Warner $268,227
Jones Day $251,250
Exelon Corp $237,311
University of Chicago $230,175
Latham & Watkins $228,276
Microsoft Corp $222,578
Wilmerhale Llp $222,080
General Electric $210,329 

	.

23.	

	John Freeman July 24th, 2008 9:35 pm 

	Corporations regard human being as tools to be used until they are
broken, then thrown away.There are always new tools willing to be hired.
Fraud created the law that allows corporations to exist.

	Veteran '66-68

24.	

	5280 July 24th, 2008 10:08 pm 

	MariusP asked: "SO, Amy Goodman, who are you endorsing for
President???"

	Obama, of course. (Heh, heh. got to pay the bills, eh Amy?)

25.	

	kane51 July 24th, 2008 10:34 pm 

	Great link, Arvy. Thank you.

26.	

	ranchero42 July 24th, 2008 10:41 pm 

	Who's paying? Uh, keep an eye out for PRODUCT placement?

27.	

	alank <http://cosmeticdemocracy.org>  July 25th, 2008 1:07 am 

	Good on you, Juliania (July 24th, 2008 1:57 pm)!!

	Green registration (not independent which is the officially
"accepted" and innocuous means of expressing discontent) is sending a
message to those traitors in Congress they cannot ignore!

	Read why at Switch2Green.org.

	They MUST know people are developing a different value system,
represented by Green values and the Green platform. It says: THIS is what we
want! Do THIS if you have the courage.

	But to get the most effect, your representatives must KNOW you
switched. It will show up in statistics which they can pretend to ignore,
but your letter puts it right in their faces. At Switch2Green.org, you can
send a message to your representatives about WHY you switched!

	And.donate, too: to the Green Party <http://GP.org>  and to the
McKinney  <http://RunCynthiaRun.org> campaign. This is for several reasons. 

*	Help the party and candidate fighting for a good showing to "get the
People a seat at the table." < /li> 

*	Support your own voice and agenda by building the Green Voice and
the Green Party's ability to get paid or earned media. What Greens will be
saying to all America about the war, torture, healthcare, justice,
sustainable development and a myriad other issues will be your own thoughts
and feelings about rebuilding our nation. 

28.	

	KEM PATRICK July 25th, 2008 3:02 am 

	Hi ~Nannie~ And in spite of Obama's claim that he was just a "minor
legal aquaintenance" of Tony Rezko, Rezko was Obamas major fund raiser.
There most likely will be a lot of revealing crap coming out in Rezko's
trial which could be very damaging to Obama's self made image.

29.	

	rtdrury July 25th, 2008 3:27 am 

	Rackets grow not out of logic but greed.

30.	

	mbruton July 25th, 2008 5:35 am 

	Fascist regimes always generates elaborate pomp and circumstance to
awe the goggle eyed masses.

31.	

	freethinker68 July 25th, 2008 5:49 am 

	It is really laughable for anyone to say, think or believe we live
in a democracy. When a person or worse, corporation, can BUY access and
influence of elected politicians or candidates there is NO WAY anyone can
say our political process isn't corrupted or corruptable. "Da" Nile ain't
just a river in Egypt. Vote Nader/Gonzalez '08

32.	

	fakedemocracy July 25th, 2008 7:54 am 

	Another name for a corporate paid for democracy, is fakedemocracy.

33.	

	sierra July 25th, 2008 10:10 am 

	Another version of switching parties:
Switch to Non-Partisan ASAP and then:
Vote for Obama if you must for president..then vote Green for ALL OTHER
offices, independents in Congress or Senate and as "Green as possible" for
all your local offices.

	That is a concrete start to change in USA.

34.	

	canuckchuck July 25th, 2008 11:01 am 

	"Glenn Greenwald of Salon.com recently pointed out that the
Democratic conventioneers and registered media in attendance will receive a
tote bag prominently emblazoned with the AT&T logo. It's a perfect metaphor
for a much larger gift, the one Democrats and Republicans just gave AT&T and
other telecoms: retroactive immunity for spying on U.S. citizens"

	Glenn didn';t mention that it is stuffed with money, and has a
listening devise sewn into the lining.

35.	

	canuckchuck July 25th, 2008 11:01 am 

	Fakedemocracy..the word is "Dumbocracy"

36.	

	Steinos July 25th, 2008 11:14 am 

	What I do not understand if the dems. really want to win why did
they pick Denver of all places? They should of held it in New Orleans, then
at least some of this corrupt soft money pouring in could have gone to
provide jobs to people in New Orleans. Why are they not holding the GOP feet
to the fire and say "we have not forgotten the victims of Katrina?"

37.	

	Little Brother July 25th, 2008 11:24 am 

	Why are they not holding the GOP feet to the fire and say "we have
not forgotten the victims of Katrina?"
_______________________________

	Because they HAVE forgotten the victims of Katrina?

	Just a wild guess.

38.	

	hope2Bgreen July 25th, 2008 11:35 am 

	It all gets back to the lesser of 2 evils doesn't it? dem Dems or
doz Repubs. In other words: Will the real corrupt corporate crony please
stand up? But whereas 99% of the Repubs are corporate lackies maybe only 40%
of the Dems are. Unfortunately the Greens or other parties are not truly
relevant in our current 2 party system. 

	Disclaimer: Above Percentages are totally fictious, but do reflect
personal perceptions. 

	So what to do? Vote as progressive as possible, work to oust the
most corporate Dems ..get into local politics so you can influence
directions.

39.	

	veracity July 25th, 2008 12:18 pm 

	C A N U C K C H U C K,

	When you say "Dumbocracy", I think

	"Dumb_mockercy" 

	or

	"De_mockercy" 

	or

	"Dem_ockercy" 

	Namaste < Presence >
< We must be the change we wish to see in the world > - Gandhi
< There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed
> - Gandhi
< We adopt the means of nonviolence because our end is a community at peace
with itself > - ML King

40.	

	Old Jeffersonian July 25th, 2008 4:54 pm 

	I'm sitting here at a keyboard, but my mind's eye rests upon a pile
of old, weathered boards shoved off into a corner. Upon approaching closer,
I see that they are the old, neglected planks of the platform of the
Democratic Party. When I was a youngster, I used to listen to that platform
being built, plank by plank at the Democratic Convention. It was always a
long, tough job, but when it was finally built, the candidates, who also
helped to build it, could stand on it and see where they were going. The
people voting for them could see, too.

	Campaigning used to be on issues and problems the nation faced. The
candidate with the best solutions was the one that got the votes. Nowadays,
it seems that no one is up to facing and solving problems.

	"Vote for me, the other guy is no good!"
"What do you plan to do about the economy?"
"The other guy is a crook, vote for me!"
And so on throughout the campaign.

	In the last election, I would have liked to see the Democratic Party
build a platform, plank by plank, addressing the problems that currently
beset our nation and the world today. Sadly enough, name calling seemed to
be enough for the Democrats as well as the Republicans.

	Perhaps, if We the People were to build a platform to take our
country back and restore the honor of the United States, we could take our
nation back from the oligarchy which holds it in thrall.

	We need a plank reaffirming the rule of law in international
relations and re-ratifying the treaties that Bush has unilaterally or
through economic and military blackmail abrogated. In that plank should be a
re-dedication to the United Nations, created at the end of WW-II to avoid
the nightmare that we are once again going through in Iraq and Afghanistan.
We need a well thought out plank with a plan for ending these Iraq and
Afghan incursions with honor and getting our troops out of there and back
home.

	We need a plank forbidding the Chief Executive from starting
preemptive wars at will with anyone he disagrees with, or just follow the
Constitution, which restricts that role to the Congress.

	We need a plank to restore a middle class to this country. Our
greatest moment in history has been that in which we had a burgeoning middle
class which worked, played, fought just wars and willingly payed taxes for
what we got from good government. We are devolving into the extremely rich
who do none of the above, and the extremely poor who can't do any of the
above. We should have a plank addressing the return of the tax giveaways to
the rich and powerful, with that money going back to the people through
social services, Medicare, and education; services which the Neocons want to
do away with through bankrupting the American economy if that is what it
takes.

	Above all, there must be a plank which promises to return the
Constitution and Bill of Rights to the People of the United States, so we
can again be a nation respected for honor and decency.

	We need a plank which will allow the poor and the elderly to get
medications at a reasonable price without rewarding the drug cartels with
huge grants of tax money to make up the difference.

	There are many more planks to lay to build a strong platform. It
used to be that the candidate was chosen after the platform was erected,
largely upon his response to the platform. These days, the candidate seems
to be selected long before the convention. Then the Democrats get to rubber
stamp the choice just like the Republicans do.

	We really need a strong third party to act as a truly effective
gadfly to the existing parties, but above all, We the People need to build a
party platform that reflects the needs of our nation and we need candidates
who will stand upon that platform and say, "If I am elected, I pledge my
administration to carry out the mandate of this platform on which I stand.
And if I fail to do so, I encourage the American people to replace me with
someone who can and will."

	That person would have my vote and as much of my savings and pension
as I could afford, if it would help to get him or her elected.

41.	

	Nannie July 25th, 2008 5:44 pm 

	Hi KEM !! I have DSL now.

	.
http://www.votenader.org/issues/
single payer national health insurance:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Cut the huge, bloated, wasteful military budget:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table

	No to nuclear power, solar energy first:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Aggressive crackdown on corporate crime and corporate welfare:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Open up the Presidential debates:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Adopt a carbon pollution tax:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Reverse U.S. policy in the Middle East:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table

	Impeach Bush/Cheney:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table

	Repeal the Taft-Hartley anti-union law:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table

	Adopt a Wall Street securities speculation tax:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Put an end to ballot access obstructionism:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table 

	Work to end corporate personhood:
Nader: On the table; Obama/McCain: Off the table
.

42.	

	Jerry D. Rose July 25th, 2008 7:31 pm 

	Old Jeffersonian (4:54 PM), good news, THERE IS a party whose
national convention has already hammered out a platform that includes most
if not all the "planks" you want in that platform, and much more in the same
vein beside. It's called the Green Party and its 2008 platform, approved the
beginning of this month in Chicago, can be seen at: 

	http://www.gp.org/platform/2004/

	And yes, the presidential and vice-presidential nominees Cynthia
McKinney and Rosa Clemente, will stand firmly on that platform which
represents GP "values" that weren't created for the occasion of an election
but are the everyday modus operandi of the party, as they have been for many
years. Please look at this platform (it's very long, so bring a cup of
coffee to your computer) and I think when you do, you will as I have done,
be willing to invest some money and even more some of your energy in
promoting this candidacy. Think of the GP as the "new Jeffersonian"
politics, without the imperialism of the "old" version.

43.	

	Jerry D. Rose July 25th, 2008 10:08 pm 

	My apologies for the last post: I linked to the 2004 Green Party
platform. An April 2008 draft, much shorter, linked below, was amended at
the July convention and the amended version is apparently not yet on the
website. But you definitely get "the idea" of the platform on which Cynthia
and Rosa are running:

http://www.gp.org/committees/platform/draft/documents/Chapter-One.pdf

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