skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

U.S. gender wage gap grows for first time in a decade; Trump has embraced NC's Mark Robinson, calling him 'Martin Luther King on steroids'; Volunteers sought as early voting kicks off in MN; Women's political contributions in congressional races fall short of men's.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Rising threats of political violence, a Federal Reserve rate cut, crypto industry campaign contributions and reproductive rights are shaping today's political landscape.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

A USDA report shows a widening gap in rural versus urban health, a North Carolina county remains divided over a LGBTQ library display, and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz' policies are spotlighted after his elevation to the Democratic presidential ticket.

Study Shows Money Does Play Role in Politics

play audio
Play

Monday, August 29, 2016   

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – As public outrage over the influence of money in politics continues to grow – seen in both the Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump campaigns – a new study provides compelling evidence that the U.S. political system is more "one dollar, one vote" than "one person, one vote."

Thomas Ferguson, director of research at the Institute for New Economic Thinking in New York and his team tapped data on congressional races and discovered a stark correlation.

"Basically, you get the percentage of votes that you have of the percentage of money,” he explains. “It's an amazingly crass relationship, and it's very direct and it holds for hundreds of elections."

Researchers created a chart to track spending and votes in U.S. Senate and House races since 1980.

Ferguson says if money and votes were unrelated, the chart would be scattered.

Almost without exception, he says the results produced a straight line: when parties spend little to no money, they get the fewest votes, and spending the most money results in the most votes.

Ferguson says the research supports findings from a Princeton and Northwestern study that shows the poor and middle class have virtually zero influence on government when the wealthiest Americans oppose policies.

Ferguson cites the preference by a majority of corporations and top earners for lower taxes as one example of what can happen when money drives politics.

"The rest of us have to live with the consequences of that,” he states. “Roads that don't work, schools that are collapsing.

“And the notion that the last dollar rather than the last votes should determine things strikes me as a crazy idea."

Ferguson says he hopes the data will force a conversation about the need to create a more democratic political system in the U.S.

He notes public financing of elections and giving candidates free and equal time on publicly owned airwaves would be good first steps to reduce the influence of money in politics.





get more stories like this via email

more stories
Recipients of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Grant can now access funding to drive financing for thousands of climate-focused and clean energy initiatives. (bilanol/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

Michigan's most vulnerable communities are receiving federal funding to fight the devastating effects of climate change. It's part of the $27 billion …


Health and Wellness

play sound

September is Health Literacy Month, and a Denver-based group is working to help health professionals break a persistent pattern of discrimination …

Environment

play sound

A new report contends fossil fuel funding has biased Columbia University's climate research. The report, by two Columbia students, shows the …


Alabama releases roughly 220,279 men and 78,247 women from its prisons and jails each year. (Chad Robertson/Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

An Alabama woman is on a mission to help people who've been incarcerated for decades successfully transition back into society. The mission to …

Health and Wellness

play sound

In North Carolina, the gap between Medicaid reimbursement rates and the actual cost of dental care has reached a crisis point, impacting both …

So far in 2024, community health centers in North Dakota have screened 11,580 patients for food insecurity. Through those screenings, more than three thousand box meals have been distributed. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

September is Hunger Action Month. In North Dakota, it isn't just food banks trying to help underserved populations get nutritious items. Health …

Environment

play sound

Marine biologists conducting deep dives near five California islands are collecting data they hope will strengthen the case for ending gillnet fishing…

Environment

play sound

Researchers at Iowa State University are taking aim at the huge amount of energy used by data centers, now and in the future. They have developed a …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021