I firmly believe that most politicians genuinely go into governance expecting that they'll be the exception to the rule of power corrupting. And then a system that grooms men and women to be the best friends and sycophants you've ever seen descend on them, and they've suddenly been corrupted a hundred different ways before they even realize they've committed a crime. And now they're incentivized to not ruin their lives, and now people have leverage on them. And the only way to win that game is to become the person who holds the leverage.
Unless you refuse to play: public pressure, a base that isn't donor-dependent, and transparency. It's the only way this system works for the people. So of course [those who profit from that game] hate Mamdani. If he didn't have enemies, he'd just be another piece.
This is probably the right answer, but they attacked Harris for her laugh and Obama for his tan suit, if they got anything mildly incriminating your voters will eat that up. If tomorrow it is revealed mamdani committed minor tax evasion once in 2008, no matter how little that actually matters for his capacity now, they will use it to prove his untrustworthyness.
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u/FerusGrim 1d ago edited 1d ago
I firmly believe that most politicians genuinely go into governance expecting that they'll be the exception to the rule of power corrupting. And then a system that grooms men and women to be the best friends and sycophants you've ever seen descend on them, and they've suddenly been corrupted a hundred different ways before they even realize they've committed a crime. And now they're incentivized to not ruin their lives, and now people have leverage on them. And the only way to win that game is to become the person who holds the leverage.
Unless you refuse to play: public pressure, a base that isn't donor-dependent, and transparency. It's the only way this system works for the people. So of course [those who profit from that game] hate Mamdani. If he didn't have enemies, he'd just be another piece.