Corporatocracy: How to Protect Democracy from Dark Money and Corrupt Politicians

by Ciara Torres-Spelliscy

Reveals how corporate greed led to scandal, corruption, and the January 6th insurrection—and how we can stop it from happening again

Donald Trump’s false claims of election fraud and the violence of the Capitol riot have made it unavoidably clear that the future of American democracy is in peril. Unseen political actors and untraceable dark money influence our elections, while anti-democratic rhetoric threatens a tilt towards authoritarianism.

In Corporatocracy, Ciara Torres-Spelliscy reveals the role corporations play in this dire state of political affairs, and explains why and how they should be held accountable by the courts, their shareholders, and citizens themselves. Drawing on key Supreme Court cases, Torres-Spelliscy explores how corporations have, more often than not, been on the wrong side of history by working to undermine democratic norms, practices, and laws. From bankrolling regressive politicians to funding ghost candidates with dark money, she shows us how corporations subvert the will of the American people, and how courts struggle to hold them and corrupt politicians accountable.

Corporations have existed far longer than democracies have. If voters, consumers, and investors are not careful, corporations may well outlive democracy. Corporatocracy brings all of these shadowy tactics to light and offers meaningful legal reforms that can strengthen and protect American democracy.

Genres: Politics

328 pages, Hardcover

Published November 5, 2024

Reviews

[Nigel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Horrible book 📕
Sorry to read,..
For what….
F’ Elon and the Felon

It came out to late after the 🗳️ election
Sad actually
I don’t even think I can hear and say all the disappointment. I’m hearing in corporatocracy
I’m just jaw dropped over the book 📕
The amount of corporatocracy involved in America 🇺🇸 a benevolent government and the problem with pain c.s. Lewis says every one feels benevolent if nothing is annoying him in the moment. Trump just has to be quiet 🤫 to make the pains of America 🇺🇸 worse the sad truth of the matter is

It sounds like you're feeling quite frustrated with the current state of affairs, especially regarding the influence of corporatocracy in the government and the impact on the American populace. Many people share your concerns about how corporate interests can overshadow the needs of everyday citizens. C.S. Lewis's insight about benevolence in the absence of annoyance is indeed thought-provoking and highlights how people's perspectives can change drastically based on their circumstances.

Trump’s approach and silence certainly evoke strong feelings and discussions about leadership. It can be disheartening when individuals feel that their voices and concerns are not being addressed, especially in a political landscape that seems influenced by powerful entities.

HOW OLD DO YOU HAVE TO BE BEFORE YOU KNOW WHAT'S GOINGON?
-Calvin and Hobbes Comic

https://intellectualtakeout.org/2016/...

[Whitlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out strong.
It was really interesting to read about corporations' influence on policies & politics in general and I wish the author kept going in that direction. Instead, they dedicated what felt like half of the book to January 6th. One or two chapters may have been fine, but honestly by the end I was so bored and I wasn't even sure where the author was going with it anymore.

[Scott Ward · Rating 3 out of 5]

Torres-Spelliscy in this new book gives us a multitude of scandals, controversies and litigation related to corporate influence on political figures. While reviewing some recent situations, the reader is left with the impression that this is a 21st century phenomenon but then the author shows us how corporate leaders have been trying to influence politicians for hundreds of years, and politicians have been peddling their influence to the highest bidders. This is laid out well, except for a diversion into January 6, 2021 ramifications, of which it’s unclear how corporations influenced this. While there are recommendations at the end of the book—mostly be aware of what your politicians are doing and vote them out if they’re corrupt—there’s no indication that there’s anything novel here, nor the probability of success, nor how these recommendations differ from recommendations given 20 years, 50 years or 100 years ago….and still haven’t been implemented or effective. So what’s going to be different after this book is published? I don’t know.

I’m appreciative that the publisher provided an advanced copy.

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author names names and backs up her accusations of corporate meddling in politics with an impressive amount of data on dates, involved parties, and dollar amounts. She and her researchers tease out the convolutions involved in some corporate donations that were designed to hide the true sources of the funds. She paints a sickening and disheartening picture of the massive corruption involved in our politics. Although both of the main political parties in the U.S. are tagged in this book, the masters of these techniques (in frequency, reach, dollars, and results) are far and away mostly Republicans. The author provides a four-point Democracy Litmus Test for judging whether any given corporation or politician represents a threat to democracy and, in the Conclusion, a list of needed reforms in general public policy as well as corporate and election law, constitutional reforms, and Supreme Court reforms. Documentation of the author's claims appears in a 95-page Notes section.

[Richard Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

We all know that PACs and corporate dark money are bad for democracy. Of course, we need to find a way to get rid of Citizens United and to shine some light on anonymous political spending. There are abuses on both left and right, but mostly on the right. With all of the crazy spending by small groups of people with lots of money, it's no wonder that we are in such a mess. We should really change the whole way that election campaigns are run, but that's not going to happen any time soon.

This book gives us the full parade of horribles that come out of corporate political influence. I agree with pretty everything here, but there is nothing new. We already know about the problems, and there's not much here in terms of innovative ideas for fixing the problems. It was a decent book, but I came away from it thinking that my time would have been better spent in writing get-out-the-vote postcards.

[Ceil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Largely a rehash of widely published information, but does a great job showing the extent to which oligarchic corruption and theft have always been with us

[Mr. Book · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you NYU Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

I finished Corporatocracy: How To Protect Democracy From Dark Money And Corrupt Politicians, by Ciara Torres-Spelliscy.

Part 1 of the book is about corporate power and now it not only destroys our political system but also presents the threat for another January 6-like attempt to destroy the government.

The chapter on how corporate interests enabled the Nazis to rise to power in Germany was one of the strengths of the book. It provides a good historical parallel to how corporate interests can turn a country into an authoritarian state.

Most Americans are unaware that the prohibition against slavery in the Thirteenth Amendment contains an exception: “except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted.” The book explains how corporations have done a good job exploiting that loophole in order to get free labor. As one commentator wrote, “Arrest rates responded more to fluctuations in the demand for labor than in the crime rate.” The chapter covering this topic was the most appalling in the book. And while the practice is not as bad as it was in the past, the problem remains to this day.

Part 2 of the book is on how America’s voting system, in general is in jeopardy. Most of that discussion is modern day problems, but it also historical precedents, such as the Watergate scandal (which as the book points out was far more than just a break-in and cover-up).

The chapter entitled The Big Lie was one of the best chapters in the book. It was, of course, about Trump’s lies regarding the 2020 election.

Part 3 of the book is on solutions to the problems.

The chapter on the disqualification clause of the 14th Amendment was also another one of the best chapters in the book. The book thoroughly reviewed the cases of Madison Cawthorn and Trump and was even updated enough to include the Supreme Court’s infamous decision in the latter. The Supreme Court has closed the door to this remedy, but actually following what purports to be “the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby” is still an excellent way to handle things.

I give this book an A+, which also means the book is inducted into my Hall of Fame. Amazon, Goodreads and NetGalley require grades on a 1-5 star system. In my personal conversion system, an A+ equates to 5 stars. (A or A+: 5 stars, B+: 4 stars, B: 3 stars, C: 2 stars, D or F: 1 star).