> I am also confused by the uproar about this, why is what Dodd said wrong
It's not that people are upset that he is freely admitting to bribery or lobbying (depending on your viewpoint), but that is should be wrong for him to be admitting it. You are totally right. If I stand behind a congressman or woman because I agree with their actions and values, then one day I notice that they are supporting things that I am against, no one should be upset if I move my donations and support elsewhere. The problem comes from how he openly admits to the influence everyone already knows the media industry has over our legislative body.
If the media industry is as massive as they claim it to be, then every single one of those people employed in that industry has a right to support and back congressmen and women that support the values that help them strengthen their industry. The fact that the industry itself can, in parallel to those that work in the industry, also donate and support congressmen and women is the problem, as it creates exponential power with linear growth (if everyone was hypothetically contributing equally to the industry).
The same idea applies to any industry, really. No one ideally wants to reduce the size of any industry, but to limit the power any single industry has over the direction the country drafts it's laws to help and protect to be fair to everyone.
It's not that people are upset that he is freely admitting to bribery or lobbying (depending on your viewpoint), but that is should be wrong for him to be admitting it. You are totally right. If I stand behind a congressman or woman because I agree with their actions and values, then one day I notice that they are supporting things that I am against, no one should be upset if I move my donations and support elsewhere. The problem comes from how he openly admits to the influence everyone already knows the media industry has over our legislative body.
If the media industry is as massive as they claim it to be, then every single one of those people employed in that industry has a right to support and back congressmen and women that support the values that help them strengthen their industry. The fact that the industry itself can, in parallel to those that work in the industry, also donate and support congressmen and women is the problem, as it creates exponential power with linear growth (if everyone was hypothetically contributing equally to the industry).
The same idea applies to any industry, really. No one ideally wants to reduce the size of any industry, but to limit the power any single industry has over the direction the country drafts it's laws to help and protect to be fair to everyone.