Angus Deaton: Congress Prefers Wealthy
on Friday, October 16, 20152015 Nobel Prize in Economics winner Angus Deaton Money Quote saying congressional bias lies firmly with wealthy campaign donors and opposed to preferences of poor voters. Angus Deaton said:
“Voting patterns in the US Congress… are very closely aligned with the preference of their wealthy constituents and not at all aligned with the preference of the poor constituents” — Angus Deaton
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In this quote, Angus Deaton is making an observation about the influence of wealth on political representation in the United States. He argues that the voting behavior of Congress tends to match the preferences of wealthy constituents much more so than the preferences of poorer citizens.
Deaton appears to be suggesting that as economic inequality has increased, so too has the disproportionate political power of affluent individuals and groups, as elected officials are more responsive to the views of their rich backers compared to less wealthy voters.
His view is that current voting patterns in Congress do not accurately reflect the will of all constituents equally, but instead correlate more closely with the policy stances favored by those of higher socioeconomic status.