American Government Discussion 2
Cite at least two relevant details from the excerpt below and at least one claim made by elite theory about the nature of society and politics, and discuss whether Robert Reich’s description of how some private equity firms generate profits is consistent with elite theory's description of society and politics.
Private equity firms are privately owned financial organizations in which wealthy people invest large sums of money. Here’s how they make a profit: they buy struggling companies with borrowed money, often using the companies’ assets as collateral for the loans.
In 2021, private equity investors bought nearly one in seven homes in the country’s top metro areas, and private equity-backed corporations now own at least 260,000 homes across the country.
In essence, it’s a direct transfer of wealth from the middle and working class into the pockets of private equity managers. If private equity is doing such damage to working and middle-class prospects for home ownership, why isn’t the government acting to even the playing field?
Private equity and hedge funds accounted for over $625 million in political spending during the runup to the 2020 election. About $547 million of the total went to campaign contributions. The rest went to lobbying.
