Last Thursday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) appeared on The Daily Show and talked with Jon Stewart about the ongoing problem of corruption in Washington, D.C. noting that the system works “”to make sure that the tender fannies of the rich and the powerful are always carefully protected.”
Warren went on to detail what Vox called “a sophisticated understanding of the real way power and money intersect.”
Warren explained that the system is more a matter about which voices get heard and what items appear on the agenda than it is a system of quid pro quo cash for favors, stating: “The wind only blows from one direction. It only blows from the direction of those who have money.”
Warren went on to note that big interests “invest in other ways,” too, such has having their agents constantly putting pressure on Washington to address the issues that concern them. Consequently, the rich impact “every rule that’s written, in every conversation, in every discussion.”
On Friday, Warren appeared on Real Time with Bill Maher, providing additional feedback on the subject of big money and Washington.
Maher began the discussion on money by noting that someone from Hillary Clinton’s “camp” was on record saying that they’re going to raise, in his words, “an insane amount of money.” Maher went on to state that
I’ve stated before, and you probably agree, that Citizens United was a terrible ruling that allowed pretty much unlimited money into politics. We seem to have policy now that is driven by Citizen’s United in that candidates just want the money from one guy. Sheldon Adelson gave about a hundred million dollars. I think this is what is driving the anti-Iran rhetoric, the pro – I mean we’re both pro-Israel, but not like the Republicans. That’s all just because they want Sheldon Adelson’s money – the same thing with the environment: they want the Koch Brothers’ money.
Somehow as bad as we thought Citizens Unite was, it’s actually even worse.
Warren responded:
I think you’re exactly right about that. You know, Sheldon Adelson is out there and he gets to pick the candidates and then he gets to put his money behind them and see if he can’t get those offices – the Senators, the White House. This is just crazy. It’s madness and it’s scary.
Towards the end of the interview, Maher offered $1 million if Warren were to win the Democratic nomination – an offer Warren declined by, once again, declaring she is not running for president – prompting Warren to return to the subject of money in politics:
When we talk about money, I get it about money and I get it about what’s happening with Citizens United, but there’s another half to this. And that is, on the other side we may not have the money but we have our voices. And if we get out there and get organized and use our voices – I truly believe in grassroots – I believe in what we can do by linking up together.
I believe in the power of what we can do to build a country together, one that works not just for the top one-percent or even the top ten-percent, but a country that works for all of us. That’s what it’s gotta be about. Our country’s one the line, our democracy’s on the line, our future is on the line. We gotta use our voices.
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