So I'm watching Jon Stewart the other night grilling House minority leader, Nancy Pelosi , about money in politics. Her responses were an extreme exercise in schizophrenia. In one breath she produced two diametrically opposite positions. By the time she finished the two statements self-canceled, producing nothing but talking-point smoke.
Well, no, that's not exactly true. It did produce something.It showed, once again, that neither of the two parties, that alternate ruling this country, are worthy of the job.
First, Nancy said, she agreed that money in politics has gotten out of hand, and needs to reined in. But, in the same breath, she denied that money in politics has corrupted the system - and in particular, not congress.
Instead, when referring to money in politics, Pelosi prefers terms like "distorting" to describe the role of big money in big politics. (Of course the $30 million reported to be in her own campaign coffers doesn't
"distort" her, just everyone else. She says she needs that money to fight for less money in the system and to un-elect those who are being "distorted" by it.)
But corrupt? Never, she says. Never.
Well yeah, it is corrupt, Nancy, and we all know it is. Stating the opposite reminds one of Big Tobacco's decades of denial that nicotine is addictive, and smoking causes cancer.
Money in politics IS corrupting. And Nancy, that includes you. Excluding yourself from those who are being "distorted" by big money, while building a pile of the stuff yourself is one spin too far. It makes one's head hurt just hearing you say it, much less trying to make sense of it.
It's time to start calling this what it is: political corruption ... rampant, open, widespread, growing, insidiously entrenched and self-staining political corruption.
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