Forum Post: Elitism on Steroids: Americans Elect

Elitism on Steroids: “Americans Elect” http://multipolarfuture.com/?p=941

Yes, Virginia, the Establishment is trying to install a puppet in the White House.

This elitist movement is disguised as “Americans Elect.”

Americans Elect pretends to be grassroots, but its leadership reads like a “Who’s Who” of the Eastern Establishment: hedge-fund managers, corporate plutocrats, Ivy Leaguers, the Metropolitan Art Museum crowd – the full assembly of economic and cultural aristocrats. One of the earliest members is Lady Lynn Forester de Rothschild.

As Justin Elliott notes:

“Here’s what the group is not so upfront about: It’s fueled by millions of dollars of secret money, there is a group of wealthy, well-connected board members who have control over Americans Elect’s nominating process, and the group has myriad links to Wall Street.”

Justin Elliott continues:

“The group is hoping to raise $30 million for its effort. It has already raised an impressive $22 million as of last month. So where is all that money coming from? Americans Elect won’t say. In fact, the group changed how it is organized under the tax code last year in order to shield the identity of donors. It is now a 501(c)(4) “social welfare” group whose contributors are not reported publicly.”

Americans Elect has its fans. Thomas Friedman (of “The World is Flat”) writes:

“What Amazon.com did to books, what the blogosphere did to newspapers, what the iPod did to music, what drugstore.com did to pharmacies, Americans Elect plans to do to the two-party duopoly that has dominated American political life — remove the barriers to real competition, flatten the incumbents and let the people in…”

But the answer to elitism is not more elitism.

Americans Elect is top-heavy with the same people who caused the problem to begin with. The two-party duopoly can only be disbanded by the People – not by philanthropic aristocrats and billionaire speculators.

In addition, the website for Americans Elect is patronizing and manipulative.

The website looks exactly like the Big Pharma websites where people take “self-assessment quizzes.” It even has that blend of corporate sterility and New Age claptrap.

No kidding. This is copied and pasted from the Americans Elect website:

Welcome! To get things started, we’ve compiled a list

RANK YOUR PRIORITIES

Your true colors paint a more realistic picture of how you and other Americans view the issues, beyond just red and blue. Your answers will allow you to match with candidates…

Find and Draft Candidates that share your views of public figures and their core political views.

Not surprisingly, abolishing the Federal Reserve is not one of Americans Elect’s core issues.

Not surprisingly, NDAA 2012 (indefinite detention of Americans without) is not one of its core issues.

The site mentions the “Patriot Act,” but this Act is now mild compared to 9 other pieces of police-state legislation and executive orders. The Patriot Act is a “safe” debate to have.

Not surprisingly, neutrality and non-intervention is not an option.

However, we are allowed to disagree over how to micromanage policy in Iraq or Afghanistan. Should we return to Iraq if it spirals into chaos? That sort of thing…

Americans Elect addresses none of the three core issues of this election for both OWS protesters and the constitutionalist patriot movement:

1) The debt-based monetary system, with its malinvestment, boom-and-bust, and concentration of wealth.

2) The emerging police state and domestic tyranny.

3) Empire-building overseas, with open spigots of money to anyone and everyone except the Americans whose children have to pay for it all.

“Americans Elect” aims to hold an “online convention” in June and run a candidate as a third party nominee in all 50 states. It will run an “online nominating convention,” but there is a catch: Nominees will have to be approved by the higher-ups, by a Candidate Certification Committee.

Americans Elect is thinking of running a united Republican & Democrat ticket for President and Vice-President: a Neo-Con & Demo-Con ticket.

Corporate racketeers meet limousine liberals.

At present, there are two potential candidates being bandied about, rumor has it.

Donald Trump is the first candidate.

Many fans of Trump’s style, shows, books (his books are great) recognize that Trump would probably not endure the inevitable: non-stop pressure from OWS protesters (because of Trump’s high-rolling lifestyle) and also from Ron Paul supporters (who recognize that Trump would be a reformist candidate, leaving in place the Pillars of the Establishment).

America’s political landscape has changed since Trump first threw his hat into the ring (only to then withdraw it). That landscape is probably now more hostile to a Trump candidacy.

The second candidate frequently mentioned is Jon Huntsman. Whatever his personal qualities (and he has many), he barely registered in the regular Republican primaries. His campaign was nearly invisible.

Perhaps Americans Elect will select a third option (or find a clever way to have online users select one).

Before you think this scheme is going nowhere, consider that Americans Elect (with deep pockets) will share or partner with CNN, MSNBC, Washington Post, The New York Times, the Daily Beast, CSPAN, etc… It will share or partner with the same media that has displayed tireless bias in its coverage of the 2012 Republican primaries.

Imagine if this same media unites behind its dream candidate? It would be a nightmare.

Recommended:

1.

Track the developments of Americans Elect on its own website: http://www.americanselect.org/

2.

Track the collusion to defraud America:

The blog Irregular Times is a “watchdog” and covers Americans Elect with a critical eye: http://irregulartimes.com/index.php/archives/category/americanselect/

Andrew Bosworth, Ph.D.

multipolarfuture.com