I don’t know how much control rich people really have over politicians.
When someone becomes a successful politician, they have means to get money. The more money they have, the more it costs to buy them. And they probably get different offers from different rich people, sometimes wanting them to do contradictory things, so they can choose to accept bribes compatible with their own opinions.
Also I suspect that when you have enough money, more money becomes meaningless, and the real currency is the power to influence each other. For example, if you already have 10 billlion dollars, instead of even another 50 billion dollars you would prefer a “friend” who can get you out of jail free if that ever becomes necessary. So maybe from some level higher, you have to hold an office to be able to provide something valuable to others who hold an office.
But if having enough money really is enough to improve the world, then certainly, we should do that.
Well, firstly, you don’t need to buy a whole politician (though it doesn’t hurt); you only need to buy the legislation you need. Thus you don’t care how your politician votes on gay marriage or veteran’s benefits or whatever, as long he is voting for Bill #1234567.8, which you sponsored, and which deals with protecting squirrel habitats (because you really like squirrels, just for example). This is good, because it’s not enough to just have one politician, you need a bunch of them, and it’s cheaper to just buy their votes piecemeal.
Secondly, you are of course correct about politicians getting money from different sources, but hey, that’s the free market for you. On the other hand, politicians aren’t really all that rich. Sure, they may be millionaires, and a few might be billionaires, but the $50e9 figure that you mentioned would be unimaginable to any of them. If you really had that much money (and were smart about using it), you would be able to buy not merely a single politicians, but entire committees, wholesale.
I don’t know how much control rich people really have over politicians.
When someone becomes a successful politician, they have means to get money. The more money they have, the more it costs to buy them. And they probably get different offers from different rich people, sometimes wanting them to do contradictory things, so they can choose to accept bribes compatible with their own opinions.
Also I suspect that when you have enough money, more money becomes meaningless, and the real currency is the power to influence each other. For example, if you already have 10 billlion dollars, instead of even another 50 billion dollars you would prefer a “friend” who can get you out of jail free if that ever becomes necessary. So maybe from some level higher, you have to hold an office to be able to provide something valuable to others who hold an office.
But if having enough money really is enough to improve the world, then certainly, we should do that.
Well, firstly, you don’t need to buy a whole politician (though it doesn’t hurt); you only need to buy the legislation you need. Thus you don’t care how your politician votes on gay marriage or veteran’s benefits or whatever, as long he is voting for Bill #1234567.8, which you sponsored, and which deals with protecting squirrel habitats (because you really like squirrels, just for example). This is good, because it’s not enough to just have one politician, you need a bunch of them, and it’s cheaper to just buy their votes piecemeal.
Secondly, you are of course correct about politicians getting money from different sources, but hey, that’s the free market for you. On the other hand, politicians aren’t really all that rich. Sure, they may be millionaires, and a few might be billionaires, but the $50e9 figure that you mentioned would be unimaginable to any of them. If you really had that much money (and were smart about using it), you would be able to buy not merely a single politicians, but entire committees, wholesale.