Corrupt system and Big Money
Big Money in politics is subverting the interest of the American people. It is time for change! But can we change a corrupt system by taking its money? Our democracy is undermined by the ability of special interests who buy politicians. Given how our career politicians were unprepared to address the pandemic challenges playing partisan politics, and continue to respond to the lobbyists, the drum for change is beating even harder. There is no argument: we need to overturn the 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court decision today!
Rep. Eshoo is in her 28th year, but has only passed 4 bills into law. Two bills renamed a post office and federal building. Another redesignated a month as National Scleroderma Awareness Month and the 4th modified provisions to determine payments at children’s hospital. Ineffective legislations. But there is more. How about legislation that does not favor people. She went against President Obama and introduced legislation that favors Big Pharma, not people, giving pharmaceutical companies 12-year exclusivity periods for biologic drugs, beyond the length of their patents, to protect them from competition by the generic drug industry. Why would anyone do that? Well, she’s the top recipient of Pharma money in the House of Representatives, while she chairs the House Health Subcommittee. This is a huge conflict of interest. After the Stanford Daily shared their concern for Rep. Eshoo’s ties to Big Pharma, Rep. Eshoo herself ADMITTED to receiving millions from the industry while justifying it. We don’t buy the justification. It’s time to stop making excuses.
This is the reason why we have refuted Rep. Eshoo’s endorsement by End Citizens United, along with many others. Unlike Rep. Eshoo, I refuse PAC and Special Interest Group money — not just for this race — for perpetuity. Help me fight the big money in politics by making a small contribution at RishiKumar.com/contribute. We only accept contributions from people like you and me.
Congresswoman Anna Eshoo. — my opponent on your ballot — has expressed outrage against Citizens United. But it’s a hollow statement given the influence of money on her own political agenda. In a January 2015 press release, she wrote that Citizens United “cast a dark shadow over our democracy by bringing us dangerously closer to an electoral system where the voices of average Americans are easily drowned out by special interests, shadowy front groups, and a handful of billionaires.” But what is more interesting is that End Citizens United, the organization whose agenda is to purge big money from politics, gave an A rating to Rep. Eshoo. Is this how we want our system to work? That is why we strongly refuted the endorsement.
On the city council, I have consistently rejected land-developer money. It made it easier for me to respond to the people challenges without any undue influences. I will not change my stance on the influence of money in politics. From day one, I’ve said what every elected leader in America needs to say: no corporate PAC money, no special interests, no lobbyists. Because our democracy is best when it’s responsive to YOU, the American people.
I have always been a grassroots worker, a problem solver and a community activist — and that is why I am running today. During the pandemic, I launched the Neighborhood Pandemic Preparedness Team (NPPT). We called 86,000 seniors helping them with groceries, medications, masks and more. During the pandemic and recent fires, hundreds of our volunteers helped thousands of neighbors who needed help. I am not a career politician. I seek to address the tough challenges we face, more so in a post-covid-19 world. I am a hi-tech executive who was re-elected to the Saratoga city council with the highest vote count in city history. As an elected leader, an engineer by education, I delivered strong results with a simple getting-things-done agenda.
I will fight for the issues important to our families and our neighbors, not the special interest groups. We need to level the playing field for people-centric policies that our country desperately needs to address the needs of the post-covid-19 world. Read Jon Sakoda’s tweet below.
I would be honored to have your vote, today or by November 3rd.
I will serve with integrity — that is no other way for me.
