“金主政治”是如何形成的--美国竞选资金改革的历史

How Does Plutocracy Come into Being-History of the Campaign Finance Reform in United States

"民主之春"运动的爆发使得美国选举制度的弊病成为学术界关注的焦点。自20世纪70年代开始的竞选资金改革导致了美国不断滑向"金主政治",其中最高法院通过一系列的司法裁决,逐渐松绑和推翻了国会对竞选资金的立法限制,最终为选举中的政治献金和政治腐败开启了便利之门。仅从最高法院和国会自身的结构性因素来看,最高法院大法官的终身制和国会中的政治极化现象,是竞选资金改革趋于失败的重要原因。由于这些问题关涉美国的宪政体制,非经重大的政治改革不可能得到彻底解决,这也意味着未来美国将会继续在"金主政治"的深渊中越陷越深。

The recent outbreak of 'Democracy Spring'movement has placed under spotlight the disadvantages of American electoral system. The campaign finance reform since the 1970 s has gradually created a plutocracy in the United States. During this reform,the Supreme Court struck down the Congress restrictions on campaign contributions through a series of verdicts,and eventually opened the gate for political donations and corruption in elections. From the perspective of the structures of the Supreme Court and Congress,the lifelong tenure of the judges and political polarization in Congress are what led to the failure of campaign finance reform.Deeply rooted in the American constitutional system,these problems cannot be resolved without significant political reform,which means that the United States will remain trapped in the abyss of plutocracy in the future.