This feels like a Bait and Switch campaign

[Veilex]

Last edited Tue Jul 1, 2014, 04:33 PM - Edit history (1)

So, a friend of mine posted in facebook about a new campaign to get money out of politics... problem is, when I went to the website, I started having all kinds of little red flags and warning bells go off. Below is my response to the facebook post, along with their website address and video
https://mayday.us/#about-mayday

#t=166

My reason for not supporting Mayday is this; It is a new movement. It is using buzzwords like "reform", and buzz-phrases like “We need to take our country back” it doesn't provide any concrete plans for the use of the money other than an overly broad "to win a Congress committed to fundamental reform"

I’ll break it down a little further… we start with the titular “Help us reduce the influence of money in politics!” – However, this doesn’t tell us WHO’S money interests we’re fighting. This could literally be anyone. It could be your and my money, the money from big corporations or money from Ren & Stimpy, we don’t know.

Another line that pops out at me is: “needs to get a Congress committed to fundamental reform by 2016” – What fundamental reform? Sure we have the overly broad “get money out of politics”, but we’ve already seen the gaping flaw in that comment. The two lines are also conspicuously broken up… almost as if they were two separate comments to make it more defensible in a court setting (Well, it’s not our fault if viewer’s got some kind of implied meaning).

The video goes out of its way to make tons of IMPLIED statements, but doesn’t actually state any details… additionally, they’ve gotten some of their statistics from the CATO institute, an ultra-Libertarian think tank headed by none other than Charles Koch of the Koch Brothers (the same people that have been pushing for things such as the most recent supreme court ruling)

The video goes on to talk about “changing the way campaigns are funded” but fails, again, to give us specific details on what changes in campaign funding is being sought (which is a whole lot different from the broad “Get money out of politics”)

More broad language from the video “Fundamental reform in how campaigns are funded” tells us nothing. It’s a broad statement that could mean eliminating all laws that put limitations on corporate political involvement, or it could actually mean giving power back to the people…its completely unclear what they mean.

“A Super Pac, to get rid of Super Pac’s for good” Sounds appealing doesn’t it? Wait, but wouldn’t eliminating rules requiring super pacs in order for corporations to make political contributions achieve the same thing?

I’m sorry but this campaign has all of the hallmarks of a bait and switch campaign that conservative think tanks are so very fond of.

[Anansi1171]

1. Very likely Koch-funded astroturf - as you noted

...simply designed to co-opt populism against a burnt toast congress and direct that towards the very worst of the 1%

[TexinD]

2. obvious

Anything by Koch = anti Democracy. But perhaps someone is those stats is a way to make them look impressive... and to a typical idiot, ITS REAL.

Ever notice that Teabaggers only seem to understand a few words at a time? Then they'll send money.

Many "teabag" groups are money scams. Hell, even I considered doing it, but I don't have experience at being a crook and it would be easy to trip up on taxes and get the IRS on your ass. Besides Fraud charges. But for some experienced criminals, they can make the sham, operate it for a few months - may make hundreds of thousands of dollars - then disappear. Then do it again elsewhere.

[Xyzse]

11. Very true, and very sad.

"Hell, even I considered doing it, but I don't have experience at being a crook and it would be easy to trip up on taxes and get the IRS on your ass"

Still, it is money squandered by them.

[The Traveler]

3. Lawrence Lessig is a great guy and is carrying forward on a cause

that was defined to him by Aaron Swartz ... specifically the need to dilute the pernicious influence of money over politics. Lessig's previous work focused on aspects of intellectual property law vital to maintaining a free society in a technology dominated era. (See Creative Commons license.) Swartz defined himself as a progressive, and I am quite comfortable with that given the arc of his activism.

I have no qualms standing with Lessig on this matter and many others. Lessig is trying to craft a truly bipartisan effort here ... which may prove difficult due the lack of principled conservatives in this country nowadays. Lessig was also not born yesterday ... he is a brilliant man, and a careful one. He will not easily be subverted. He is suspicious of excessive corporate and financial power and he seeks ways of mobilizing common people to resist that power.

Perhaps you are unfamiliar with Lessig's body of work.

Trav

[misterhighwasted]

4. Good Call Velix. Got your Koch radar on I see.

Very glad you responded as you did. You just educated a whole lot of readers by highlighting talking points & a few things to question when they read ads like this.
Well Done.

[The Traveler]

5. Lessig's parable of "Lesterland"

[link:https://www.ted.com/talks/lawrence_lessig_we_the_people_and_the_republic_we_must_reclaim#|

[The Traveler]

6. So besides having "gotten some of their statistics from Cato"

what other links to the Kochs have you unearthed.

Lessig's purpose seems completely clear to me. You, on the other, imply a lot of stuff in very vague terms ... which is what you accuse Larry of. So ... fill in some details, if ya please.

Or are you one of those people who is afraid he might actually succeed in limiting the influence of big money?

Trav

[Veilex]

7. My problem with the campaign stems largly from its vagueness...

My cautiousness stems from all the campaigns developed by ultra-libertarian/conservative think tanks that have had similarly vague phraseology.

If the campaign is legit, then I'll gladly welcome it with open arms.

[The Traveler]

12. Wait and see, my friend

And prepare to be pleased. Lessig is the real deal. He may not succeed. But he is sure giving it a try.

Trav

[Veilex]

13. I hope you're right. EOM

[blkmusclmachine]

8. We know LOTS about bait & switch in the DEM Party. It usually goes by phony terms like triangulation

and bi-partisanship.

[bemildred]

9. Anybody who talks of "taking our democracy back" is not planning to give it to you and me. nt

[Sunlei]

10. had to search Lawrence Lessig bio to see who he is. He looks pretty legit to me at first read.

Here's the wiki info, looks well educated has worked both sides in politics but seems to be able to change his mind and not go all out for one side or another.

His focus seems to be the corruption in politics, I agree with a lot of what he presents in his written works. Our Congress is corrupt and useless.

I think it may be best to not pass judgment off a short youtube video and check more in depth his plans before condemning him outright.

Here's his wiki bio-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Lessig

here is google search on his name with a lot of information about him.

https://www.google.com/#q=lawrence+lessig

[davidpdx]

14. I've gotten emails about it through Demand Progress

I am interested in what they are doing, but at the same time skeptical about who they are going to fund.

[Veilex]

15. I'm in the same camp...

It'd be nice to know without a doubt if they are in the same group as Move to Amend and WolfePac.

[davidpdx]

16. An interesting update

I happened to look on the site just now, it looks like they hit the $5 million mark before the end of July 4th. At 10 pm PST they are at about $5.1.

Hopefully they will come up with some more details as they move on in their campaign.