Why corporate political cash matters: The Real Welfare Cheats by Nicholas Kristof

It’s because the issues seem arcane that corporate lobbyists get away with
murder. The Oxfam report says that each $1 the biggest companies spent on
lobbying was associated with $130 in tax breaks and more than $4,000 in
federal loans, loan guarantees and bailouts.

And why would a humanitarian nonprofit like Oxfam spend its time
poring over offshore accounts and tax dodges? “The global economic system is
becoming increasingly rigged” in ways that exacerbate inequality, laments Ray
Offenheiser, president of Oxfam America.

One academic study found that tax dodging by major corporations costs
the U.S. Treasury up to $111 billion a year. By my math, less than one ­fifth of
that annually would be more than enough to pay the additional costs of fullday
prekindergarten for all 4­year­olds in America ($15 billion), prevent lead
poisoning in tens of thousands of children ($2 billion), provide books and
parent coaching for at ­risk kids across the country ($1 billion) and end family
homelessness ($2 billion).

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