Boondoggle, by Pat Garofalo
This is a newsletter about how corporations and monopolies take advantage of states, cities, and local communities.
Ever wondered how Amazon can get huge tax breaks for HQ2, why Facebook’s data centers are draped in secrecy, or why governments subsidize everything from hotels to Hollywood productions to sporting goods stores in pyramids, while letting corporations nickel and dime residents and local businesses into oblivion? This is the newsletter for you.
I not only break down how this all happens, but explain why, and let you know what you can do to stop it.
Who am I?
Pat Garofalo, author of “The Billionaire Boondoggle: How Our Politicians Let Corporations and Bigwigs Steal Our Money and Jobs.” You can buy the book here.
I’m also director of state and local policy at the American Economic Liberties Project and Fight Corporate Monopolies.
Before that, I was managing editor at TalkPoverty.org, assistant managing editor for opinion at U.S. News & World Report and economic policy editor at ThinkProgress. I began covering economic policy during the 2008 financial crisis and Great Recession, and have written for many, many publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, The Nation, The Guardian, The Atlantic, and The Week.
Follow me on Twitter at @Pat_Garofalo.
