Our Government in Action - Some Ugly Facts
Story at-a-glance
- Shocking story of former super political lobbyist Jack Abramoff in which he explains how he influenced Congress for years; was caught breaking the law and sent to federal prison. He shares many of the dirty secrets that he and other lobbyists use to steal the government away from you. Since he already served prison time for this, he can't go back to jail for what he reveals
- The pharmaceutical industry is the largest lobby in the U.S. Last year, the industry spent over $244 million lobbying for favorable legislation and tax breaks
- The most effective strategy employed by industry and lobby groups is the promise of extremely lucrative jobs once their service on the Hill is over. Similarly, revolving doors between industry and the federal agencies that oversee them have caused untold harm by hampering health freedom and promoting corporate interests
- According to Abramoff, to curtail this type of corruption within the halls of Congress, members of Congress and their staff must be prohibited from ever becoming lobbyists once they leave office
By Dr. Mercola
One of my favorite TV shows is 60 Minutes. I have watched it regularly for over 40 years. It is the only series I record on my DVR.
I do this because occasionally they air segments [like the one above] that are shocking insights into the reality that rarely reached conventional media channels due to suppression.
I am really shocked and surprised that this video was ever aired.
It is a rare look behind the scenes at just how corrupt the US political system really is.
CBS News correspondent, Lesley Stahl, was so visibly shaken, it seemed like if she'd had a baseball bat handy, she just might have used it on Abramoff.
Not so much because she was angry with him, but with the system he represents.
-------------------------------------
Interestingly, 60 Minutes aired another insight into the corrupted political process and showed how many in Congress perform insider trades from privileged information they have access to. And it's legal for them to do so.
Any other private citizen would serve serious prison time for doing this, but Congressmen get to brag as to how much they made from their insider trades. Warning, this video may make you violently ill from disgust
Secrets of Bribing US Congressman RevealedBy plying Congressmen and their staffers with gifts, from meals to use of private jets, Abramoff was able to have significant influence over about 100 congressional offices—a failure, according to his own standards, as there were still 355 offices that he did not control.
In return for gifts and special treatment, the Congressional members he had pocketed would vote yes for legislation and tax breaks that were favorable for his clients.
It was easy—and lucrative. Abramoff made about $5 million per year during his lobbying heydays. Then, five years ago, it all caved in. After a very public scandal, he pled guilty to corrupting public officials, tax evasion and fraud.
He served three-and-a-half years in a medium security prison in Maryland. He now blames his unscrupulous actions on being so far into debt that he lost his ability to discern right from wrong. In fact, at the time, he believed he was one of the more honest lobbyists around. He claims he was "blinded" by what was going on, and states that virtually all Congressmen are able to rationalize their behavior as well. They don't necessarily feel guilty at all about the fact that what they're doing is undermining the basic structure of the United States.
If this doesn't disturb you, I don't know what will—especially when you consider that as of 2011, there are an estimated 12,220 other Abramoff's out there lobbying Congress and federal agencies for various industries.
Which Industry has the Greatest Control on Capitol Hill?
The pharmaceutical industry is the BIGGEST political lobby in the US. There should be no doubt about the power the drug industry wields in shaping the U.S. health care system, and political lobbying is one of the primary reasons why the drug companies are controlling nearly the entire the health industry.
Last year, the pharmaceutical industry as a whole spent over $244 million on lobbying, and that's just the dollars-and-cents influence that what was reported. As Abramoff explains, there are other methods that are FAR more effective for getting desired results, which I'll get to in a moment. In addition, federal candidates received over $15 million in political contributions last year.
The lobbying expenditures and political contributions for the top three pharmaceutical companies for last year were as follows:
| Company | Pfizer | GlaxoSmithKline | Sanofi-Aventis |
| Lobbying expenditures | $13.3 million | over $6 million | nearly $7.6 million |
| Election cycle political contributions | over $1.1 million | $606,000 | $87,000 |
Compare this to the biotech industry giant like Monsanto, which spent about $5 million on their lobbying efforts in 2010.
All of this adds up to some serious cash. In just one decade, from 1998 to 2008, the pharmaceutical industry alone spent $1.5 BILLION on lobbying for legislative favors and tax breaks. And that's just one industry, albeit the most generous one!
Is it any wonder that so few of our laws make sense anymore?
The pharmaceutical industry's power and influence over government, the field of conventional medicine, and your mind through massive marketing efforts, is in a class of its own. It's just that most people don't realize the staggering magnitude of their financial influence, and therefore are blinded and deceived by the manipulated perception that the industry is "helping mankind."
Lobbying Pays Off BIG Time
Although the dollars the pharmaceutical companies spend on lobbying are astronomical by most people's standards, they pale in comparison to the profits this industry generates. And there can be little doubt that their stratospheric profits are in large part due to the financial influence and control they wield over Congressional members and other federal agencies.
As of 2009, the global market for pharmaceuticals was worth more than $837 billion, and is expected to reach $1.1 TRILLION in 2014.
A trillion dollars is one million million…
No comments:
Post a Comment