Why Glitchin' Mitch McConnell refuses to resign
His donors made an investment and expect something in return
If you’re curious why Mitch McConnell is reluctant to resign, despite his two recent malfunctions, here’s the answer: because he can’t.
McConnell, like most Republicans and Democrats, received a lot of money from a lot of donors. That money is an investment — an investment that says McConnell will act in their interests once in office. As such, McConnell has an obligation to these donors, and I think that’s where his reluctance to resign comes from.
For example, as reported by Open Secrets, employees at Hunt Companies donated nearly $18,000 to McConnell. Hunt Companies owns CGL Companies, one of the largest architecture and planning firms for private prisons in the United States.
So it’s not surprising that, in December 2022, McConnell stood in the way of the SAFE Banking Act, a bipartisan measure that would have undone federal restrictions making it difficult for legal cannabis businesses to access financial services.
McConnell received thousands of dollars in donations from individuals at Humana, Blue Cross, and other healthcare companies.
He repaid them by opposing Medicare for All, and more recently, he’s taken a strong stance against lowering drug prices.
McConnell received $46,656 from individuals at Raytheon — and paid them back by not only supporting US wars around the world, but in other ways too, such as by supporting Raytheon lobbyist Mark Esper’s nomination to the defense department.
The problem of money influencing politics is not unique to McConnell — but that’s exactly the problem. Go ahead and look up a candidate’s donors — Republican or Democrat — and then watch how those donors are repaid once they’re in office, opinions of every day voters be damned.
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