The mega rich are the new political bosses. Is that bad for democracy?

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

The demise of political party bosses and the smoke-filled rooms in which they operated was heralded a long time ago as an important step toward handing more power over the selection of presidential nominees to ordinary citizens. Who would have thought then that billionaires would seek to become the new bosses of American politics?

Super-wealthy individuals receive outsize attention in presidential politics. And virtually every prospective candidate wants the support of a well-funded super PAC and the vocal backing of the mega rich. The defection of a disenchanted billionaire is treated as bad news for any candidate. But what difference does all this make?

Just last week, Americans for Prosperity, part of the political network of billionaire industrialist Charles Koch, endorsed Nikki Haley in her bid to become the Republican nominee. The endorsement was heralded as a major coup for the former United Nations ambassador and South Carolina governor, who has been gaining in the polls.

It is also considered news that billionaire Jamie Dimon, the chairman of JPMorgan Chase, spoke with her on the phone, and that Larry Fink, the chairman of BlackRock, attended a small gathering for her. When hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin said he would back Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), it garnered headlines, and again when he stopped short of doing so and declared himself “still on the sidelines.”

https://wapo.st/3N9u62D

Yes it is.

[TwilightZone]

1. "new"

They've been the bosses for a very long time. The only variation over time is to what degree. Not much has really changed -- it's just more overt and public now, like pretty much everything else in our society.

"Who would have thought then that billionaires would seek to become the new bosses of American politics?"

Uh, everyone?

[Lonestarblue]

2. US billionaires are the same as the oligarchs in Russia.

Taking everything they can from average people and expecting the government to bend to their every demand while they hold themselves above the law and unaccountable for anything they destroy—like democracy. They are the robber barons of our era, and they do control most of the government, and as we have seen the Supreme Court.

All of them support predatory capitalism with no protections for anyone but themselves. They want a country without any regulations preventing them from doing whatever they want, even if their actions result in an unlivable planet.

[Jim__]

3. Is an aristocratic class bad for democracy? It seems like one of the functions of democracy is to ...

... eliminate aristocratic classes. So it would seem like an aristocratic class is bad for democracy.

[Uncle Joe]

4. Oligarchy undermines everything else, whether it be the fight against climate change,

establishing universal health care, the high price of prescription drugs, conflicts around the world, or a decent standard of living for everyone else.

Thanks for the thread Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin

[Kid Berwyn]

5. When three people own as much as half the country, yes.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/noahkirsch/2017/11/09/the-3-richest-americans-hold-more-wealth-than-bottom-50-of-country-study-finds/