Arnie’s Introduction:
climate refugees
quid pro quo/ General Vindman/ never Trumper
Part One:
Dave Levinthal – Editor at Large – Center for Public Integrity.
The Center for Political Accountability, with the Wharton School, rates Fortune 500 companies on aspects of political transparency.
The recipient non-profit doesn’t have to disclose source of funds, but corp. can if they want. Plethora of gov.t agencies don’t have clear role either.
Corporate money can be foreign influence.
Existential threats to integrity of our elections espicially if foreign money.
Can secret corporate speech be free speech?
“Americans for Job Security”
Rules differ for typical non-profit vs. political group.
FEC lacks a quorum to enforce the law.
The Stockholder Derivative Action is a possible theoretical legal resort if FEC inaction, not for run-of-the-mill infractions.
The highest and lowest rated corporations.
Decision to disclose, like all corporate decisions, relates to maximizing shareholder value.
Part Two:
Cedric de Leon, Director of the Labor Center and Associate Professor of Sociology at UMASS Amherst, author of Crisis: When Political Parties Lose the Consent to Rule,
Reading history through the lens of the present moment, looking back to the mid-nineteenth century, and early twentieth century.
The crisis of hegemony, When the party system fractures.
Faith in the federal government is down to 19%.
Level of polarization is like the mid 19th c. when
party policy was to maintain the economic well being of white men… which group of white men could exploit the western expansion? …. …independent farmers, or plantation owners?. … relate to the great recession … impacts of job loss among white men.
Trump election followed on the failure of the Obama “new new deal”,
The Miseducation of Barak Obama…taking down Wall St. was waylaid by palace intrigue.
Arnie brings it back to question of democratic party in 2015/Bernie campaign.
