6.7.2.5 Political Ploys Used by Wealthy People to Get Richer
Political ploys used by wealthy people to get richer include using the media outlets they own and using money to influence politicians.
As noted earlier (3.5.1), there is a logical justification for asking those who have benefited most from an economy to pay the most towards keeping it going. Some wealthy people have used political pressure to reduce their contributions though, as illustrated below:
● Wealthy media owners persuade people to vote for neoliberal politicians (6.4.3). They have a range of tools at their disposal, including selective reporting, misleading statements, and even outright lies.
● Politicians need popular support to remain in power (6.4.2). They are personally influenced by the media, and they assess what the population wants through its prism.
● Rich people can also influence politicians directly, by lobbying and making financial donations (6.4.5).
● Neoliberal political decisions favour the rich – with lower government spend, lower taxes and fewer regulations (6.7.1).
Elon Musk has recently deployed all the political ploys used by wealthy people to make themselves richer. As reported by Heather Cox Richardson:
He “supported Trump’s campaign both through his ownership of X, formerly Twitter, and then with $132 million in cash and with apparent giveaways to get voters to give the campaign personal information.
As an immigrant from South Africa, Musk is barred from the presidency himself by the U.S. Constitution, which requires that a president be born in the U.S. (out of the Framers’ concern that a foreign country could put a puppet in the presidency). But he is now very close to Trump and stands to gain significantly from a Trump presidency, both through deregulation and government contracts, and through Trump’s planned tariffs on Chinese imports that will enable Musk to monopolize the electric vehicle market in the U.S.”
Musk has more than 200 million followers on X. He has used it to support Trump, sometimes with lies. And he has been given an advisory role in the Administration with a cost-cutting mission that is neoliberal, benefiting the wealthy.
Musk’s power is unique, and he is the richest person in the world, but other wealthy people have used some of the same techniques. Reform is possible, though contentious:
● The law can be used to limit some forms of harmful media reporting (5.4.5), although sensitivity is required to preserve free speech.
● Campaign financing could be limited by law, if there were sufficient political will.
● Neoliberal policies do not necessarily win elections, and there have been signs of a voter backlash.
This page is intended to form part of Edition 4 of the Patterns of Power series of books. An archived copy of it is held at https://www.patternsofpower.org/edition04/6725.htm.