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 Democracy and Capitalism: Part Twoposted by Robert Reich at 19h20 GMT on Sep 26
 Years ago, we assumed that capitalism and democracy went hand in glove, that capitalism almost inevitably led to democracy and vice versa. Now we cannot be so sure. China has become a hotbed of capitalism but it is not a democracy by any stretch. Nor Singapore. Russia calls itself a democracy, and it is practicing a form of capitalism, but few would agree that its democracy is robust. Indeed, even in the United States, as I noted this morning, capitalism has burgeoned over the last thirty years -- into what I call "Supercapitalism" in my new book by that name -- but democracy has become far less capable of reflecting what we want or need to do together, as citizens. Part of the problem, I think, is that super-competitive capitalism has spilled over into the democratic process. When I first went to Washington to serve in Gerald Ford's administration, way back in the early 1970s, there were about 7,000 lobbyists in Washington, and the city was rather seedy. By the time I returned to serve in the Clinton administration, there were over 35,000 lobbyists, tens of thousands of lawyers -- most serving corporations, and thousands of public-relations Where did all the money come from? From the private sector, mostly from corporations. And why? Because of the same forces that have pushed corporations to become more competitive and offer consumers and investors better and better deals -- that is, intense competition. Google has hired platoons of lobbyists because Microsoft has platoons, and there are so many issues -- intellectual property, trade, antitrust, and so on -- that may have a The arms race is replicated across the economy. You see it not just in the US but also in Brussels, and in other major capitols. It is now an inherent part of global capitalism. But as a result, democracy is submerged. The cacophony of corporate interests The question is how to mutually de-escalate, how to pass laws and regulations that reverse the incentives, so that democracy can be rescued from supercapitalism. I hope these remarks are helpful, and I hope you will be sufficiently provoked by my remarks that you purchase my new book, "Supercapitalism" and 
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SPP
I'm interested in your idea that "super-competitive capitalism has spilled over into the democratic process." I think that argument can definitely be made - you don't need to look any further than the so-called Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) in North America for a good example.
That the process is so secretive is undemocratic enough, but coupled with the fact that the three countries' leaders refuse to meet with anyone but the North American Competitiveness Council (NACC), a group of CEOs from major corporations, is downright chilling. Major decisions about land, water, labor and policing are being made without any public debate and without input from social justice and environmental advocates.
That said, I believe that capitalism and democracy have always been at odds. You seem to be working from the assumption that there's something more recently gone awry with it. Is that correct? Does it not seem that the very notion of a "capitalist democracy" is fundamentally flawed?
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