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In the aftermath of the 2010 Citizens United decision, it's become commonplace to note the growing political dominance of a small segment of the economic elite. But what exactly are those members of the elite doing with their newfound influence? The One Percent Solution provides an answer to this question for the first time. Gordon Lafer's book is a comprehensive account of legislation promoted by the nation's biggest corporate lobbies across all fifty state legislatures and encompassing a wide range of labor and economic policies.In an era of growing economic insecurity, it turns out that one of the main reasons life is becoming harder for American workers is a relentless—and concerted—offensive by the country’s best-funded and most powerful political forces: corporate lobbies empowered by the Supreme Court to influence legislative outcomes with an endless supply of cash. These actors have successfully championed hundreds of new laws that lower wages, eliminate paid sick leave, undo the right to sue over job discrimination, and cut essential public services.Lafer shows how corporate strategies have been shaped by twenty-first-century conditions—including globalization, economic decline, and the populism reflected in both the Trump and Sanders campaigns of 2016. Perhaps most important, Lafer shows that the corporate legislative agenda has come to endanger the scope of democracy itself. For anyone who wants to know what to expect from corporate-backed Republican leadership in Washington, D.C., there is no better guide than this record of what the same set of actors has been doing in the state legislatures under its control.
In the aftermath of the 2010 Citizens United decision, it's become commonplace to note the growing political dominance of a small segment of the economic elite. But what exactly are those members of...
In the aftermath of the 2010 Citizens United decision, it's become commonplace to note the growing political dominance of a small segment of the economic elite. But what exactly are those members of the elite doing with their newfound influence? The One Percent Solution provides an answer to this question for the first time. Gordon Lafer's book is a comprehensive account of legislation promoted by the nation's biggest corporate lobbies across all fifty state legislatures and encompassing a wide range of labor and economic policies.In an era of growing economic insecurity, it turns out that one of the main reasons life is becoming harder for American workers is a relentless—and concerted—offensive by the country’s best-funded and most powerful political forces: corporate lobbies empowered by the Supreme Court to influence legislative outcomes with an endless supply of cash. These actors have successfully championed hundreds of new laws that lower wages, eliminate paid sick leave, undo the right to sue over job discrimination, and cut essential public services.Lafer shows how corporate strategies have been shaped by twenty-first-century conditions—including globalization, economic decline, and the populism reflected in both the Trump and Sanders campaigns of 2016. Perhaps most important, Lafer shows that the corporate legislative agenda has come to endanger the scope of democracy itself. For anyone who wants to know what to expect from corporate-backed Republican leadership in Washington, D.C., there is no better guide than this record of what the same set of actors has been doing in the state legislatures under its control.
Advance Praise
"In an age of divided government and Congressional gridlock, Gordon
Lafer shows that a handful of the nation's most conservative business
lobbying organizations are still able to get some of the public policies
that they want—by focusing their efforts on state legislatures. This
book reveals the outlines of a coordinated lobbying campaign that could
have the effect of increasing economic and political inequality in
America."—Isaac William Martin, University of California, San Diego,
author of Rich People’s Movements: Grassroots Campaigns to Untax the One Percent
"In an age of divided government and Congressional gridlock, Gordon Lafer shows that a handful of the nation's most conservative business lobbying organizations are still able to get some of the...
"In an age of divided government and Congressional gridlock, Gordon
Lafer shows that a handful of the nation's most conservative business
lobbying organizations are still able to get some of the public policies
that they want—by focusing their efforts on state legislatures. This
book reveals the outlines of a coordinated lobbying campaign that could
have the effect of increasing economic and political inequality in
America."—Isaac William Martin, University of California, San Diego,
author of Rich People’s Movements: Grassroots Campaigns to Untax the One Percent
The subheading "How Corporations Are Remaking America One State at a Time" is a really good summary of what this book is. It's a breakdown of the various laws at state level that have been manipulated and pushed through by big business, and to an extent, shows the actual impact that this has on the average person.
As a person not from the US, with limited knowledge on how lawmaking works in the States, I found this a very informative read, if a little dense and disheartening.
Ultimately worth it if you have any interest in this area, but was a very slow read for me.
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Featured Reviews
Opal S, Reviewer
The subheading "How Corporations Are Remaking America One State at a Time" is a really good summary of what this book is. It's a breakdown of the various laws at state level that have been manipulated and pushed through by big business, and to an extent, shows the actual impact that this has on the average person.
As a person not from the US, with limited knowledge on how lawmaking works in the States, I found this a very informative read, if a little dense and disheartening.
Ultimately worth it if you have any interest in this area, but was a very slow read for me.
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Biographies & Memoirs, Entertainment & Pop Culture, Nonfiction (Adult)
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