The American Bankers Association, a trade group for thousands of banks headed by former Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating, voted to start a legal entity for this federal campaign cycle, adding millions of dollars into an already overstuffed election.
The ABA entity would reportedly donate to existing Super PACs, so that the member banks can keep their donations secret.
Oh, you poor things; did the O-man hurt your feelings? Were his bailouts not generous enough? There, there, now; let's dry those tears by giving a few million bucks to Rmoney...The contributions from member banks into this fund could total at least $6 million, if not more. Bloomberg reports that much of this money will be used on 6-12 contested US Senate races. But according to Lee Fang, “Keating has been featured as a financial services policy advisor” to the Romney-Ryan campaign at various fundraisers throughout the year. So it appears likely that at least some of this bank money will get funneled into SuperPACs supporting the Republicans on the Presidential ticket. Banks have turned away from funding Obama, as they did in 2008, and moved the majority of their money toward Romney, probably because of feeling slighted by random comments rather than because of any actual policy differences. ...
Candidates Can
Take It To The Bank
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This kind of crap is a direct result of Citizens United and an affront to the notion that citizens elect their leaders. Could it come any closer to the raw purchase of elections than having banks contribute millions of dollars to campaigns? But of course, as Rmoney reminds us, "Corporations are people, my friend" (video), and clearly the corporations are his friend, not ours.
The late great Justice Brandeis was right: "We may have democracy, or we may have wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both." ABA contributions to super PACs are shining examples of why this is so.
They have my money, they have my house, they have my loans... now they want my vote. What's not to like?
ReplyDeleteellroon, part of me always regrets that I never got to a position where I felt I could responsibly attempt to buy my own home. Part of me, in this day and age, is grateful to my younger self for not trying. "Sufficient unto the day is the" Wall Street "evil thereof."
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