Introduction: Democracy, Inc., and the Betrayal of the Constitution

Abstract

We live in the age of Democracy, Inc., where the private economic sphere has become so bloated with power that it has, in effect, subsumed the government sphere. How did Democracy, Inc., arise? How did the conservative justices of the early Roberts Court—John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, and Anthony Kennedy—endorse Democracy, Inc.? How did that endorsement betray the Constitution and threaten American democracy and capitalism? How did the election of Donald Trump to the presidency manifest Democracy, Inc.? How can the new Roberts Court, with Neil Gorsuch filling the vacant seat, confront Democracy, Inc.? This chapter introduces these themes.

To illustrate the nation’s current peril, this chapter focuses on American Tradition Partnership, Inc. v. Bullock, a 2012 Roberts Court decision following Citizens United, but with a history stretching back more than a century. This history reveals a sordid tale of corporations corrupting democracy in the state of Montana. After presenting this case, the introduction provides a roadmap for the book by summarizing the chapter-by-chapter narrative.