Despite the fact that we've been burned before, most Americans continue to allow themselves to be bamboozled into casting their votes for one candidate or another, believing that this time they mean what they say, this time they really care about the citizenry, this time will be different.
Of course, it never turns out differently.
We are as easily discarded the day after the elections as we were wantonly wooed in the months leading up to the big day. Those same politicians who were once so eager to pose for our pictures, smile at our jokes, and glad-hand us for our votes will, upon being elected, retreat behind a massive, impenetrable wall that ensures we are not seen or heard from again--at least, until the next election.
The joke is on us.
As I point out in my book BattlefieldAmerica: TheWarontheAmericanPeople, all of the caucuses, primaries, nominating conventions, town hall meetings, rallies, meet and greets, delegates and super-delegates are sophisticated schemes aimed at advancing the illusion of participation culminating in the reassurance ritual of voting.
It's not about Red Republicans or Blue Democrats. It's about Green Donors--i.e, those with money who can afford to pay for access.
It works the same with every politician and every party.
Indeed, the First Amendment's assurance of a right to petition the government for a redress of grievances has become predicated on how much money you're willing to shell out in order to gain access to your elected and appointed officials.
Then again, money has always played a starring role in American politics.
Bill Clinton famously allowed top-dollar donors to spend a night in the Lincoln Bedroom at the White House in exchange for roughly $5.4 million in donations to the Democratic National Committee. A $500,000 donation might get you invited to a quarterly meeting with Barack Obama. And for a mere $5,000 donation, lobbyists are being given exclusive invitations to join Congressmen and senators for weekend getaways that include wine tastings, fly fishing, skiing, golfing, hunting, spas, seaside cocktail parties and more.
If you're just a lowly citizen with limited cash, however, you're out of luck.
Try contacting your so-called representatives without paying for the privilege, and see how far that gets you. I can assure you that you won't be given the kinds of access that lobbyists, special interest groups and top donors enjoy.
Having been saddled with a pay-to-play system that provides access only to those with enough cash to grease the wheels of the political machine, average Americans have little to no say in the workings of their government and even less access to their so-called representatives.
Donald Trump, as he has boasted, might be able to buy and sell politicians of all stripes (including Hillary Clinton), but the average American would be hard-pressed to get the kind of access enjoyed by corporate executives, lobbyists and other members of the moneyed elite.
Indeed, members of Congress have to work hard to keep their constituents at a distance--minimizing town-hall meetings, making minimal public appearances while at home in their districts, only appearing at events in controlled settings where they're the only ones talking, and if they must interact with constituents, doing so via telephone town meetings or impromptu visits to local businesses where the chances of being accosted by angry voters are greatly minimized.
And under the Trespass Bill, passed by Congress in 2012 and signed into law by President Obama, if you dare to exercise your First Amendment right to speak freely to a politician, assemble in public near a politician, or petition a government official for a redress of grievances, you risk a fine or a lengthy stay in prison.
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