Martin Gilens & Benjamin Page: Rich Policy
on Friday, December 11, 2015Martin Gilens & Benjamin I. Page Money Quotation saying Lawmakers pay far more attention to corporate and business interests along with rich Americans than to the general public. Martin Gilens & Benjamin I. Page said:
“If policymaking is dominated by powerful business organizations and a small number of affluent Americans, then America’s claims to being a democratic society are seriously threatened” — Martin Gilens & Benjamin I. Page
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In this quote, Martin Gilens and Benjamin I. Page are suggesting that if policy decisions in America are primarily influenced by large corporations and a small wealthy segment of the population, rather than the public as a whole, then the very idea of the United States being a democratic society is put into question.
Their view is that for a government to truly be democratic, it should represent the interests of all citizens equally, not just those with significant economic power or wealth. But if policymakers are mainly responsive to powerful business groups and affluent individuals when making laws and regulations, that calls into doubt whether average Americans have a meaningful say in their own governance.
So this quote serves as a warning about the potential threats to democracy when money and special interests dominate the policymaking process over public interests.