‘Nation on the Take’ by Wendell Potter and Nick Penniman explains how the wealthy control Washington

[think]

‘Nation on the Take’ by Wendell Potter and Nick Penniman explains how the wealthy control Washington

By Peggy Burch, Chapter16.org - April 08, 2016

If you suspect that lobbyists and wealthy campaign donors run Capitol Hill like a puppet theater, "Nation on the Take" by investigative journalists Wendell Potter and Nick Penniman will rob you of any hope that you're wrong. The book is a dynamic, fact-packed course in how money — in massive amounts since the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision — pollutes the legislative process. It's a tidal wave of information demonstrating with crisp prose and clear graphics how well-funded trade and industry groups can prevent even the most obvious legislation for the public good from becoming law.

This is familiar terrain for Potter, a native Tennessean whose previous book, "Deadly Spin," exposed the treacherous lobbying and PR practices of the insurance industry, tricks he learned when he was in charge of corporate communications at CIGNA. Potter — who grew up in Kingsport, attended UT, and began his career as a journalist at the old Memphis Press-Scimitar — was partly inspired to leave CIGNA and turn whistle-blower by a visit to a health fair for the uninsured held at the fairgrounds near his parents' East Tennessee home. Dentists were pulling teeth and surgeons were cutting out skin cancers in animal stalls converted to patient rooms, with long lines of people waiting to be treated.

In "Nation on the Take," Potter and Penniman, executive director of Issue One, collect the work of other journalists, studies by nonprofit think tanks and watch-dog organizations, and stories of average people hurt by the new dynamic to support their premise that "our government has become coin-operated."

A chapter called "Drugged" begins, "Bill and Faith Wildrick have never heard of Billy Tauzin, but they're paying dearly for Tauzin's tireless work for the pharmaceutical industry." Bill and his insurance company had to pay a thousand dollars a day for a pill called Sovaldi to treat Hepatits C. In India, the government-negotiated price for Sovaldi is $10 a pill, the authors write, because "[o]ther countries have come up with frameworks to make drugs affordable for people, whereas in the U.S. it has always been a case of what the market will bear."

The same chapter tells the story of Billy Tauzin, who chaired the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which oversees the Food and Drug Administration, from 2001 to 2004. "While he held that chairmanship, drug companies and insurance and health professionals contributed nearly $1 million to Tauzin's congressional campaigns," the authors write.

The journalists provide similar behind-the-scenes views of thwarted attempts to reform Wall Street; limit the toxic effects of mercury, formaldehyde and arsenic; or improve the quality of school lunches. There are fox-in-the-henhouse stories about the Environmental Protection Agency and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection that make you question whether you understand what the word "protection" means.

Naturally, the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision, which unleashed super PACS, is included among the causes of the general belittling of the voice of average voters. The sheer amount of money at play in elections now forces members of Congress to spend huge chunks of their time fund-raising instead of hearing from constituents and considering legislation.

"Nation on the Take" makes the case that the average citizen is essentially disenfranchised in this new environment, but the authors say a recovery "is technically remarkably simple" and could be done in a day "with a single piece of legislation." In a chapter called "It's Fixable," Potter and Penniman prescribe a program to tweak the tax code, fix the campaign-finance system, add transparency through data-sharing, and regulate lobbying. As some people say about praying, it can't hurt and it might help.

To read an uncut version of this review — and more local book coverage — visit http://chapter16.org/, an online publication of Humanities Tennessee


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http://www.knoxnews.com/entertainment/arts/nation-on-the-take-by-wendell-potter-and-nick-penniman-explains-how-the-wealthy-control-washington-2-375082481.html

[Spitfire of ATJ]

1. We're told the wise thing to do iselect someone who plays the game better than the Republicans.

[Enthusiast]

2. And that is the most sad thing of all.

[Enthusiast]

3. Kicked and recommended a whole bunch!

[think]

4. Thanks for the kick. /nt