In the Berkshire Eagle this morning, Rep. Neal said that millions of dollars he raises from corporate interests and their lobbyists has no effect.
We all know that's simply not true.
In arguing his case, he noted his voting record on environment and labor issues. But as I’ve said, and emphasize here again: A voting record is just what you’ve had a chance to vote on. Corporate money flooding into our elections – and into the coffers of too many Democrats – has drowned out the big ideas we need. Its goal is not just to influence votes. Its goal is to narrow the agenda and water down legislation long before it comes up for a vote.
That’s why the real mark of leadership and political courage today is not just how you vote. It’s what you speak out about, day after day and year after year. The speeches you give, the legislation you introduce and co-sponsor, the important fights you take on for the 99 percent of us – even when success might be far off and require years of hard work. This is particularly true when it comes to ending the corrosive influence of big money on our democracy.
Rep. Neal also said that because Republicans now control the House of Representatives, there’s no point in championing these reforms right now. And that until there’s reform he’ll continue to accept millions of dollars from Wall Street banks, insurance companies, defense contractors, and lobbyists.
That has it 100 percent backwards. Because if we don’t have Democrats in Congress who refuse that money and demonstrate how Democrats differ from Republicans on this central issue, then we’ll never win a progressive majority in Congress and we’ll never get the kind of reform we need. And you don't have to look far to see why reform is so desperately needed.
The impact of corporate PAC money and $2,500 checks from lobbyists is clear in today’s record level of income and wealth inequality – a gap that began growing around the same time many Democrats began chasing that cash in the 1980s.
It’s evident in the ever-tighter squeeze on working people and the unconscionable levels of child poverty in western Massachusetts and across the country.
It’s evident in cuts to home-heating assistance for poor families at the same moment oil companies receive tax breaks to supplement their record profits.
And it’s obvious in the unwillingness of many in Congress to fight for the kind of WPA-style jobs program that would successfully address both long-term unemployment and growing, unmet needs in our communities.
I have great respect for Rep. Neal’s commitment to serving the people of western Massachusetts. But we have an irreconcilable, fundamental difference of opinion about the powerful forces undermining real democracy and true economic fairness. In my view, you can’t properly fight against those forces when you fund your campaigns with their money. Period.
