FDR - A Man for All Times

On October 31, 1936, President Franklin Roosevelt gave a campaign speech at Madison Square Garden where he famously proclaimed, "I welcome their hatred."  He was not speaking about foreign enemies, but his domestic enemies.  He spoke about the influence of money (read: lobbyists, corporations, etc.) on politicians and our government.

Money as political influence is nothing new in this country.  It has always had, and always will have, the biggest influence on what does and does not become the law of the land.  Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that corporations have the same First Amendment rights as individual citizens.   The narrow view of the decision is that the McCain-Feingold Act, which was created to limit broadcast electioneering by corporations and labor unions during the run-up to elections, was struck down.  However, in the long run, the justices may have opened Pandora's Box with this decision.

Mitt Romney famously declared, "Corporations are people, my friend."  He was speaking about taxes at the time, but his declaration highlights an ever growing divide in this country between the haves and the have-nots.  The poor and middle classes will always have a measurable amount of envy of the rich.  That has been the way of the world, and it always will be. Unfortunately, I don't see how giving corporations, unions (though their numbers have declined at a high rate for years), lobbyists, think-tanks, etc. the same rights as U.S. citizens will help this country in the long run.  I believe it will lead to an even greater amount of rage from people from all sides of the political spectrum.  Thus, we will see even more gridlock, shouting, and possibly violence.

Who ultimately loses from all of this?  We all do.  FDR is spinning in his grave.  Money truly is the root of all evil.