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The 2016 U.S. Presidential Election has been rife with scandal and characterized by some of the harshest vitriol ever seen in modern American politics, but according to the author there is something even worse at work in the election. In a biting and fact-driven indictment of how the race for public office is funded, Arunachalam pulls back the curtain to reveal how the millions of dollars in contributions by special interest groups, large businesses, and powerful individuals could be undermining the American political system.
Relying heavily on information gathered from official government reports, news sources, public records, etc. the author makes a strong case for how accepting vast sums from individual donors toward one's campaign could potentially lead the politician to support policy that would ultimately benefit the contributor. Moreover, he notes how hypocritical it is when the donors in question engage in practices the politician is actively campaigning against and yet their donations are still readily accepted. For example, the author questions how appropriate it is for a candidate like Hilary Clinton, who is supposedly in favor of cracking down on corporate crime, to accept highly paid speaking engagements and receive campaign contributions from companies that have come under federal investigation for bribery and corruption. Quoting Bernie Sanders, he argues that with such potential conflicts of interest a "government of the people, by the people, and for the people" could very well perish.
Arunachalam ends with a fervent plea for the next president to reform the campaign finance system that he believes is currently controlled by Wall Street and the billionaire class. He is unafraid to name names and turns his probing spotlight on contributors and politicians alike. Well-written, insightful, and informative, his timely book provides valuable food for thought.