Chamber Of Horrors - Little Shop of Commerce
A lot of people are getting really pissed at the growing power of corporations to control public policy, political discourse and media spin.
That they are now declared corporate "citizens" is a grotesquery that goes beyond black humor.
It's indecent, it's corrupt, but both Democrats and Republicans seem fine with the fact that elections are being bought and public opinion is being shaped by mega-corporation cash.
They're all fine with it because they've been paid well to be fine with it.
The US Chamber of Commerce has added a new twist to the backroom gaming of the US political system, and this year it goes quite beyond their normal support ads for conservative Republicans and attack ads aimed at liberal Democrats.
ThinkProgress has been investigating the mechanics of the Chamber's contribution to political ads besmirching Democrats.
What is new and really troubling is that the Chamber appears to be funneling sizeable amounts of cash from foreign contributing members into the current midterm races.
They are apparently co-mingling funds and adding the heft of foreign donations to bulk up their political advertising campaign.
In case you hadn't heard, it is illegal and treasonous to use foreign funds in support of US political campaigns.
And in the case of the Chamber, we're talking $75 mil in ad money to secure tax breaks for mega-corporations and to shift jobs overseas.
That's a lot of dinars in the service of Republican purchasing power.
The Bahrain Financial Harbour Holding Company, the Indian based ICICI Bank, the TAIB Bank (Bahrain), and the State Bank of India, have each contributed funds (as dues) paid directly to the US Chamber of Commerce's 501c6 political campaign fund, and just yesterday, October 8, the Chamber held an event with its foreign bank members to thank them for their service to the Republican party and American democracy in general.
Are you gagging yet? There are two questions being begged here.
Why were India and Bahrain being courted by the Chamber, and did they really imagine that they could simply exchange foreign currencies and dump the laundered US Treasury notes into a general political fund? The answer to the second question is, apparently so.
They actually thought no one would notice.
The answer to the first question is far more sinister.
Did the Chamber accept funds as membership dues from India and Bahrain with a quid pro quo of supporting Republicans so that they might be coerced to seek further destabilization in Pakistan? One way for India to win the war ongoing war with their neighbors is through direct confrontation.
The other way, it would appear, is by buying the goodwill of hawkish American politicians.
And those are, of course, predominantly Republican.
The US Chamber of Commerce was a natural place to start.
The Indians (and the US Chamber of Commerce) would have done well to study the model of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
At least they were smart enough to know that they had to be seen as an American entity before risking operating exclusively to fund the interests of Israel.
So Israel is smart, India and Bahrain not so much so.
Care for a little treason, anyone?
That they are now declared corporate "citizens" is a grotesquery that goes beyond black humor.
It's indecent, it's corrupt, but both Democrats and Republicans seem fine with the fact that elections are being bought and public opinion is being shaped by mega-corporation cash.
They're all fine with it because they've been paid well to be fine with it.
The US Chamber of Commerce has added a new twist to the backroom gaming of the US political system, and this year it goes quite beyond their normal support ads for conservative Republicans and attack ads aimed at liberal Democrats.
ThinkProgress has been investigating the mechanics of the Chamber's contribution to political ads besmirching Democrats.
What is new and really troubling is that the Chamber appears to be funneling sizeable amounts of cash from foreign contributing members into the current midterm races.
They are apparently co-mingling funds and adding the heft of foreign donations to bulk up their political advertising campaign.
In case you hadn't heard, it is illegal and treasonous to use foreign funds in support of US political campaigns.
And in the case of the Chamber, we're talking $75 mil in ad money to secure tax breaks for mega-corporations and to shift jobs overseas.
That's a lot of dinars in the service of Republican purchasing power.
The Bahrain Financial Harbour Holding Company, the Indian based ICICI Bank, the TAIB Bank (Bahrain), and the State Bank of India, have each contributed funds (as dues) paid directly to the US Chamber of Commerce's 501c6 political campaign fund, and just yesterday, October 8, the Chamber held an event with its foreign bank members to thank them for their service to the Republican party and American democracy in general.
Are you gagging yet? There are two questions being begged here.
Why were India and Bahrain being courted by the Chamber, and did they really imagine that they could simply exchange foreign currencies and dump the laundered US Treasury notes into a general political fund? The answer to the second question is, apparently so.
They actually thought no one would notice.
The answer to the first question is far more sinister.
Did the Chamber accept funds as membership dues from India and Bahrain with a quid pro quo of supporting Republicans so that they might be coerced to seek further destabilization in Pakistan? One way for India to win the war ongoing war with their neighbors is through direct confrontation.
The other way, it would appear, is by buying the goodwill of hawkish American politicians.
And those are, of course, predominantly Republican.
The US Chamber of Commerce was a natural place to start.
The Indians (and the US Chamber of Commerce) would have done well to study the model of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).
At least they were smart enough to know that they had to be seen as an American entity before risking operating exclusively to fund the interests of Israel.
So Israel is smart, India and Bahrain not so much so.
Care for a little treason, anyone?
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