Presenting an interesting scheme by which the Chinese government could take advantage of the Citizen's United decision to exert powerful influence over US elections.
I propose an interesting scenario. I cannot believe that this could actually be pulled off legally, but given the upshot of the Citizens United decision, it seems possible. If anybody knows why this scenario could not be pulled off, please advise in the comments.
In this scenario, the Chinese Communist Party directs a large number of its SOEs (State Owned Enterprises) to purchase shares in a large number of non-Chinese companies, organized in such a way that the SOEs as a group establish majority control over the targeted companies.
These targeted companies, now under the control of the Chinese, purchase shares in a large number of small US corporations, once again establishing indirect majority control by the Chinese.
The Chinese SOEs pump large amounts of money into the US corporations, which in turn are directed to donate some of the money to certain PACs. Those PACs, in turn target the most hawkish members of Congress for attack ads.
Let us suppose that the Chinese expend $100 billion on this effort through 20 years -- five major and five minor election cycles. That gives them at least $10 billion to funnel through the PACs for each and every election.
I believe that the total amount of money projected to be spent on the 2012 elections (all races) runs up to about $3 billion.
Therefore, the Chinese will outspend Americans by roughly 3 to 1 each year. This will insure that they achieve a significant number of their electoral goals.
A less hawkish Congress cuts defense spending by just 15% -- that's $100 billion per year. This reduces the need for the Chinese to spend as much money on their military programs. In effect, the $100 billion investment that the Chinese make over 20 years pays off handsomely.
If you were a member of the Chinese government, would this not seem a profitable investment?
I know that foreign agents must register with the US government, but does a US corporation count as a foreign agent? Is there anything illegal in this scheme?