Elected officials continue to ignore public opinion in four areas:
1. Having rich pay more in taxes
2. Tackling ridiculously high healthcare costs
3. Making access to voting easier
4. Restricting ownership of weapons designed to kill people on a modern day battlefield
The majority of citizens want action in these four areas and elected officials refuse to follow through. In some cases public servants have gone against public opinion. The Red Team dominated Texas Legislature received a 28% approval rating after restricting voting access in a recent special session.
Three Blue Team Congresspersons killed a provision that would allow Medicare to negotiate pharmaceutical prices.
Polls show that the idea of allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices is wildly popular. Overall, 81 percent of respondents said they supported Medicare negotiations to regulate drug costs.
Donation records reveal the three to be large recipients of pharma contribution. It's but the latest example of Congress serving economic elites, business interests and the billionaire class.
Update 10-4-21: Kevin McLaughlin's Common Sense Leadership Fund issued an ad calling tax increases "theft" and "stealing." Dangerous framing by the Red Team.
Update 10-20-21: Blue Corporacrats "Just Say No" to tax increases on wealthy. Which Senator will call David Rubenstein and tell him PEU carried interest is saved, yet again?
Update 10-25-21: PEW Research supports how public will is consistently ignored:
Eighty-five percent of surveyed American adults said they wanted an overhaul of the country's political systems, while 66% said they wanted major changes to the US economy. Just over three-fourths of respondents said there needed to be major reform to the country's healthcare systems.
85% of respondents said they wanted major political reform in the US, but only 28% expressed confidence the system could change. Most of those wanting major change aren't optimistic it can happen, and show little faith in the country's democratic processes.
Update 11-3-21: 71% of voters support raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans. The ultra rich win again according to uber-wealthy Larry Summers. The Blue Team tax plan includes:
"No rate increases below $10 million, no capital gains increases, no estate tax increases, no major reform of loopholes like carried interest and real estate exchanges but restoration of the state and local deduction explain it."
Update 11-4-21: Blue Team Senator Tim Kaine said public will equaled "purist demands." In other words the rich continue winning. Politicians Red and Blue love PEU.
Update 12-19-21: While its not in the area of law I thought this statistic might be pertinent:
Nearly six in 10 — an unusually robust consensus at a time of deep political divisions — say they’re opposed to a Trump campaign (59 percent) or a Biden campaign (57 percent) in 2024.
If politicians stick to ignoring public will it'll be Trump vs. Biden in 2024 unless God intervenes before then.
Update 1-17-22: “The preferences of the average American appear to have only a minuscule, near-zero, statistically non-significant impact upon public policy.” Offered by former Clinton Labor Secretary Robert Reich. By 2013 79% of Americans believed government was “run by a few big interests looking out for themselves.” Politicians Red and Blue love PEU.
Update 5-29-22: Texas Governor Greg Abbott has overseen responses to four massacres of Texans by deranged people with readily available weapons of war. The latest in Uvalde, Texas was perpetrated on Robb Elementary School and may engage critical suburban moms.
Update 6-8-22: The reason American public will is ignored is gerrymandered districts.
Update 6-15-22: Over half of Americans worry our country will cease to be a democracy in the future. Will elected officials ignore this concern in addition to the others?
Update 6-19-22: One Senator chose to insult the electorate when faced against public will.
Update 6-24-22: 70% of respondents want new federal legislation to ban members of Congress from stock trading, while 68% said such a ban should extend to lawmakers' spouses. No action.
The Supreme Court struck down Roe vs. Wade taking away a right of a woman to control her body. Americans’ support for abortion in all or most cases was at 80% in May 2021.
Update 10-22-22: Communist China pretends it has gone past democracy with this horse hockey:
"China's whole-process people's democracy integrates process-oriented democracy with results-oriented democracy, procedural democracy with substantive democracy, direct democracy with indirect democracy and people's democracy with the will of the state."
I thought their deal for citizens was economic freedom. The Chinese are just another version of earthly government managers looking for their own interests. Citizen input will be constrained to surveys designed by the government, not by the people. U.S. workers have completed enough employment surveys that provide no space for feedback on the crap sandwich they must eat every day.
Update 1-16-23: "A large majority of voters (83 percent) across party lines say they want to see Social Security expanded, not slashed, with the wealthy contributing their fair share in payroll taxes."
Update 1-18-23: Senator Joe Manchin said from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland:
"Our democracy will correct itself. The public and constituents will command that and demanded it that we correct it and come back to that sensible center."
Nice words for the billionaire class attending Davos to hear. They are the constituents Manchin and most politicians hear. The people, not so much.
Manchin and fellow Senator Kyrsten Sinema high fived each other in a Davos panel. Together they blocked elimination of private equity's preferred "carried interest" taxation.
Update 8-27-23: Several Harvard professors gave four reasons why elected officials restrict abortion rights despite the majority's will. One is "design of American political institutions."
