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Disrupting Political Campaigns
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Disrupting Political Campaigns

Shifting Influence from the Money to the Many

John Pudner, Heather Smith, Ben Rattray, Lucas Welsh, Heather McGhee and David Leonhardt
Aspen Institute, 2015
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Editorial Rating

8

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Recommendation

The Internet has disrupted and democratized almost every facet of US society, except democracy itself. In the United States, political campaigning and fundraising remain stubbornly dysfunctional, skewed in favor of rich contributors. Aspen Ideas Festival’s panel of political experts discusses the importance of effecting change and proposes ideas on how to achieve a more participatory democracy. getAbstract recommends this provocative, nonpartisan conversation to political campaigners, politicians with small purses and voters who want to increase the volume of their voices.

Take-Aways

  • Economic elites and corporations hold undue sway on the United States’ public policy, while average citizens have little or no influence on the issues that affect them.
  • The US system is structured in a way that incentivizes political candidates to put the interests of their financial backers ahead of the issues that concern constituents.
  • If all US citizens had equal influence in policy making, economic inequality would fall, the minimum wage would be higher and the US deficit would shrink.

About the Speakers

Lucas Welch is the executive director of the Pluribus Project. David Leonhardt is managing editor of the Upshot website. Heather Smith is a former president of Rock the Vote. John Pudner is executive director of Take Back Our Republic. Heather McGhee is president of Demos. Ben Rattray is CEO of Change.org.

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