The Bag of Money and Power

This is an easy, fun, and informative game to you can play to get high school students to understand the problem of money in politics.

Have all the students stand in the middle of the room. Read off the two opposing political statements. Tell the students to go the one side of the room if they agree more with one statement, or to go to the other side of the room in they agree more with the other statement.

Once the all the students have picked a side, give the side indicated the Bag of Money and Power (i.e. a bag of candy). Tell them that they can dig in – the other side gets nothing. The side that gets the Bag of Money and Power is the side that, politically, gives more money to political campaigns and thus has control over how Congress treats that issue. To reinforce this concept, use the explanations under each issue.

WAGES:

Statement one: “I think we should raise the minimum wage so that anyone who works 40 hours a week can take care of her family’s basic needs.”

Statement two: “I think raising the minimum wage would hurt the economy because many businesses can’t afford to pay their workers more. I think it is better to have a low paying job than no job at all.” (This side gets control of the Bag of Money & Power)

Ask the students: who (i.e. what interest group) would support statement one? (answer: Labor Unions, workers) Who would support statement two? (answer: Big business) Who do you think gives more money to political campaigns? (Big business gives more to political campaigns than workers or labor unions by a margin of 14 to 1).

Explanation:   You will probably notice that almost all the students want to increase the minimum wage. Tell them that most Americans do too. But, at the Federal Level, the minimum wage hasn’t been increased in 8 years – adjusted for inflation the minimum wage now (in 2004) is worth less than it was in 1960. So many Americans want an increase, but the will of the majority it thwarted by just a small number of people who give to political campaigns and thus control The Bag of Money and Power.

STUDENTS:

Statement one: “I think we should build more prisons to lower the crime rate.” (This side gets control of the Bag of Money & Power)

Statement two: “I think we should build more universities so more people can go to college.”

Ask the students: who (i.e. what interest group) would support statement one? (answer: prison guard union, police) Who would support statement two? (answer: students) Who do you think gives more money to political campaigns? (In California, the prison gaud union has given millions of dollars every election, students give almost nothing.)

Explanation:   California has built 25 prisons in the last 25 years, but only one new University. The Prison Guards are probably the most powerful interest group in the state, and it is largely due to the contributions they give. (During the CA budget crisis, the prison system was the only state entity that was not forced to take a pay cut.) Students have almost no political power because they don’t give anything. No wonder prisons are being built and schools aren’t. And if you are upset about that, join Democracy Matters. Get big money out of politics so your voice can be heard.

ENVIRONMENT:

Statement one: “I think environmental regulations should be eased in certain cases when doing so would allow us to create more jobs.” (This side gets control of the Bag of Money & Power)

Statement two: “I think the environment is too important. We should not weaken laws that protect the environment even if it would create a few more jobs.”

Ask the students: who (i.e. what interest group) would support statement one? (answer: big business that pollute, like GE) Who would support statement two? (answer:  environmentalists) Who did you think gives more money to political campaigns? (Big business outspend environmental groups 50 to 1 on political campaigns)

Explanation: 2/3 of Americans support tighter environmental regulation, but most environmentalists will tell you that not much has happened since the environmental revolution of the 1970s. Not coincidentally, it was in the 1970s that the problem of money in politics exploded. President Bush has been one of the worst Presidents on the environment, largely because he has taken more money from oil, mining, and gas companies than any president in history. He has approved measures that have increased the amount of arsenic businesses can dump in rivers, and he has opened protected forests to logging.

HEALTHCARE:

Statement one: “I think it is important that we invest in pioneering research so we can find cures to diseases like cancer and AIDS.”   (This side gets control of the Bag of Money & Power)

Statement two: “More important than finding cures to new diseases, I think that everyone should have access to affordable prescription drugs so we can treat people who suffer from diseases we have already know how to treat effectively.”

Ask the students: who (i.e. what interest group) would support statement one? (answer: drug companies) Who would support statement two? (answer: senior citizens, health care advocates) Who did you think gives more money to political campaigns? (Pharmaceutical companies give more to political campaigns than any other industry.)

Explanation: Senior citizens have been demanding cheaper drugs for a long time. But as long as drug companies keep giving big campaign cash to Congress, seniors will have to keep skipping meals to afford the medicines they need. We still can’t import cheaper drugs from Canada. And the bill Congress passed in 2004 that would cover prescription drugs for seniors on Medicare makes it illegal for the government to negotiate lower prices using bulk purchasing. According to one study, this will increase drug company profits by $140 billion.