[gscott]

Imagine it another way. I am a health care company, you are a congressperson. You want to vote for something I don't like. I visit your office and tell you I am thinking about spending 20 million dollars in dark money ads to help elect your opponent who agrees with my position. As the politician can you even vote for this bill knowing it will probably end up with non-stop negative attach ads against you and your loosing your seat, your ability to vote on other important legislation. You vote for the bill anyway, it looses. The attack ads start, they are lies but they are continuous and overwhelming. You loose your seat to someone who will do what the lobbyist/industry wants. You are now on the outside.

[sofixa]

And as with most big structural issues in the US, the answer is right there and obvious for everyone wanting to look for it: severely restrict campaign spending, ban PACs and the like, and boom, the election process and government in general will become much less beholden to money interests.

(Yes, I know about Citizens United - it has to be repealed, which is of course possible).

[keybored]

What other way is there to imagine it?

You just described how it is a systemic issue. It’s not a case of bad apples but the system itself.

Your true hypothetical is even more damning.

[waythenewsgoes]

In a just society this would be considered extortion

[cscurmudgeon]

Any solid example of something like this happening?

[ruthmarx]

AIPAC