Robert Reich
Forty lobbyists connected to Trump have helped their clients secure over $10,000,000,000 in federal coronavirus aid, according to a new report. These lobbyists have served on his campaign, been a part of his inauguration committee or his presidential transition team, are current donors to and fundraisers for his reelection, and even worked in his executive branch. The corruption doesn’t stop there: five of these lobbyists are former administration officials and political appointees who are lobbying the very agencies they once served in — a blatant violation of Trump’s own flimsy lobbying restrictions.

Remember when Trump campaigned on “draining the swamp”? What an absolute farce. Trump has rolled back ethics regulations, filled his cabinet with former industry heads, and hired a swath of lobbyists to fill the rest of his administration. He’s ushered in a full-blown corporate takeover of our government. In order to truly stop the corruption of our democracy, we have to fix what’s broken. We must get big money out of politics, end the flow of lobbyists in and out of government, and shore up ethics laws.