Charles_in_Charge on Nostr: Something that a lot of people don't know is once in office, Congressman or Senator ...

Something that a lot of people don't know is once in office, Congressman or Senator has to raise money not just to get re-elected, but he also needs to constantly feed money to the party leadership. If he doesn't feed that beast, he won't get put on any important committees, which is where a lot of power resides. Some hair on fire activist the party elders don't approve of can get elected, but if he doesn't play ball, if he doesn't keep throwing money at the party, he will be sidelined.

No important committee seat for him. He can still cast his vote on bills that make it to the floor, but that's it. He gets no hand in helping to shape that bill, question witnesses in committee hearings, help pick which witnesses are called, nothing. Like the nerdy kid that shows up at the dance, but then all the cool kids ignore him so he spends the night standing alone in the corner.

Now add in the fact that a lot of bills are basically written by lobbyists with the help of compliant staffers. So things like AIPAC and it's network of networks isn't just showering politicians with money, they're likely writing bills, putting them before politicians who need a constant flow of money like a junkie needs his next fix. He knows where a good chunk of that money comes from, knows that everyone else is in the same boat, and knows that if he doesn't play ball he'll be made powerless and likely be out of a job next election cycle.

Put it all together, and what you have is a pay to play scam where other countries and international corporations decide the fate of the nation, while voters are mired in the illusion they have any say in how their own government runs. There's a reason every intelligent, learned person throughout history thought any form of democracy was a terrible form of government.