Is That a Politician in Your Pocket

"Get rich quick! Read this book and learn how to invest in politicians for fun and profit! Just don't leave this book where any regular voters can read it!" Arianna Huffington Every day, average Americans and consumers shell out more in taxes to prop up a wide variety of industries. Thanks to the flood of money in politics, the safety of our food, clothing, air, water, and children's health is compromised, often with deadly results. Americans find themselves paying more for cable TV, groceries, student loans, prescription drugs, bank ATM fees and airline tickets. It's unlikely candidates from either party will be campaigning on these themes, but as this book vigorously uncovers, we are all more prone to being ripped off by businesses ranging from brokerage firms to used car dealers all because wealthy special interests buy favors from Congress with campaign contributions. Published just in time for the climax of the 2004 presidential sweepstakes, Is That a Politician in Your Pocket? is a wry and cutting exploration of the corrupting influence of money in politics. Blending satirical bite with mountains of eye-opening research and magazine-style graphic design, this rollicking call-to-arms breaks the issue into manageable, kitchen-table topics and makes it accessible with graphs, tables, sidebars, quizzes, and fascinating factoids. Micah L. Sifry (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY) is a Senior Analyst and Nancy Watzman (Denver, C0) is a Research and Investigative Projects Director at Public Campaign. They have contributed to the New York Times, Salon.com, the New Republic, the Nation, and Harper's.