A democracy that started with 6% of the public able to vote. A government that now listens to roughly the same percentage.
The U.S. Constitution was written by 55 delegates — all white, all male, all wealthy, most enslaved people. The document they produced protected property far more than people. Understanding where we are now requires being clear about where we started.
Every expansion of democracy in American history was fought for — by people who were beaten, imprisoned, and killed for it. None of it was given voluntarily by those in power. And with each expansion, new methods of suppression followed almost immediately.
Citizens United v. FEC (2010) declared that corporations have First Amendment rights and money is speech. The decision removed nearly all limits on outside political spending. What followed was not a vibrant democracy — it was an auction.
Princeton political scientists Gilens and Page analyzed 1,779 policy outcomes and found that average citizens have “little or no independent influence” on U.S. policy. Economic elites and organized interest groups have “substantial independent impact.” The policies most Americans want — 70%, 80%, 85% approval — do not become law.
On issue after issue, Congress consistently fails to pass legislation that has overwhelming public support. This is not a partisan problem — it’s a structural one. When money determines access and access determines outcomes, popularity stops mattering.
Congress has a 15% approval rating. 97% of incumbents who ran in 2024 won re-election. This is not an accident — it’s the result of gerrymandering, campaign finance advantages, and name recognition systems that make almost all seats structurally non-competitive.
Political money does not come from the population. It comes from a narrow, predominantly white, predominantly male, predominantly wealthy sliver of it. The donor class writes the agenda — and that agenda reflects who they are, not who the country is.
In 2024, more than 90% of $200+ federal contributions came from majority-white neighborhoods. People of color account for only 10% of individual political contributions. Women of color: just 2%. The donor class writes the policy agenda — and it does not look like America.