VIDEO: Chris Hedges and Ralph Nader on Corporate Control, Faux Liberals and Hillary Clinton
“All you gotta do in politics is say the right thing, even though your whole record is contrary, and you’re on your way," Nader says.
In the first half of a two-part interview with Ralph Nader on TeleSUR, “Days of Revolt” host Chris Hedges and the iconic consumer advocate discuss the advancement of corporate control in the U.S. political system, the rise of faux liberals and what to expect from Hillary Clinton.
Nader, whose latest books include “Unstoppable: The Emerging Left-Right Alliance to Dismantle the Corporate State” and “Return to Sender: Unanswered Letters to the President, 2001-2015,” explains that once Democrats realized they could raise money through the corporate world just like Republicans, they carved out tax loopholes for big business in exchange for cash contributions.
“And that’s when the Democratic party started going off the cliff,” Nader says, adding that since the early 1970s — with few exceptions — there hasn’t been a single major piece of legislation that advances the health, safety and economic rights of the American people.
“That’s the effect of money in politics,” he explains. “That’s the effect of a totally subservient strategy by the liberals.”
And what effect did that money have on citizens’ groups? Hedges asks.
“They began working harder and harder for less and less every day,” Nader explains, saying that liberal groups lowered their horizons, became defensively tactical and ceased to put forth an aggressive agenda.
“And once you are on the defensive in politics, you are on the defensive,” Nader says. “It’s almost impossible to recover. It’s like you’re on your heels, heels, heels.”
Nader also tackles the idea of faux liberals like Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, who smile while undermining the fundamental rights of Americans.
“All you gotta do in politics is say the right thing, even though your whole record is contrary, and you’re on your way,” Nader says. His targets include Hillary Clinton, who, he says, uses “the same approach.” “It’s saying what you didn’t do. And this should come out in the next year.”
To find out what Nader thinks will happen next in American politics, watch the full video below:
Posted by Jenna Berbeo
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