Dark Money, Dark Candidacy
“Government is instituted for the common good for the protection, safety, prosperity, and happiness of the people; and not for profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of men.”
— John Adams
It is commonly said that money makes the world go ‘round, but most take this statement with a grain of salt. How much truth actually lies behind these words? At least for an American, it may have more validity than one would hope. Centuries ago, the Founding Fathers preached about obtaining and maintaining a government that worked selflessly in the interest of the people, but it seems as though somehow the path that led to reaching that dream has been long-lost. Nowadays, politicians at all levels of power tend to sway their decisions based on the wants and needs of those who throw obscene amounts of money at them. This flaw in the American government may be accentuated by the implementation of super-PACs, and the fact that unlimited donations can be made by corporations to fund presidencies with a degree of anonymity. When voters enter the booth, they may think they are choosing the next President to represent the people and their interests, but in reality they may just be choosing the next invisible corporation to take control of and abuse the system.
To put my money where my mouth is, a perfect example of this issue is Jeb Bush’s super-PAC, Right to Rise. Recently, it has received two donations of $100,000 each from two different “ghost companies” that are almost untraceable. The first of the two limited liability companies, TH Holdings, appears to have not made any business transactions (ever) and has no owners or employees. The only information that could be uncovered was an address in New York City that has ties to Bush’s second cousin, George Herbert Walker, although he claims to have no associations with the company.
To go on, the second mysterious ghost company is Heather Oaks LLC, based out of Alabama. To make itself even more puzzling than TH Holdings, this company, according to Alabama’s records, hasn’t existed in over a decade. How is it possible for a non-functioning and closed company to make such a donation? Obviously, someone is hiding in the dark behind the loopholes in the current political system.
The deeper super-PACs are looked into, along with the corruption of the present-day American government, more questions are raised than answers. Who are the people behind the corporations funding potential future president(s)? How will they sway the candidates decisions? Is the American “democracy” run by all of the people, or just the ones who shovel money into the interests of politicians? More narrowly, after these recent discoveries were made, is Jeb Bush a reliable and trustworthy candidate? The questions are endless, and they all lead to one point at issue; is there hope in the future for the American political system, or has it been swallowed by the black hole created by the greed of the 1%?
