Sociology

The book authored by William Domoff, Who Rules America is the detailed description of the power and political structure in the United States of America. Its last edition carries additional information regarding the growth of President Barack Obama and the people who supported and financed his campaign. This put in to detail the threats and challenges to the corporate and social class.  This reviews the American power structure both at local and national level. He correlates the power theory to the class dominance theory in America. The author builds the argument for power dominance through the dominance of owners and managers of large income producing properties like corporations, banks and agribusinesses. Narrowing his argument to the local level, Domoff argues that the power and politics at this level is dominated by the land owners and businesses related to real estate. This nexus of land owners and corporate giants at local and national level respectively, rules indirectly by participating in the political canvassing and ultimately through appointments to key decision-making positions. Most of the American economy is dominated by big corporations, and these corporations jointly constitute a corporate community. Both at economic and sociological level the corporate community have ties like the ownership of common stock and experience of corporate executives and hiring of common legal and consultation firms. The corporate community has common agenda i.e. profit maximization and same enemies like labor unions. Thus these joint ventures compel them to constitute a corporate community.

Connecting the details and filtering his argument Domoff says that numbers of large corporations are privately owned by same family or its group. He writes in his book, In 1976 Forbes estimated that there were over 350 such companies with sales above 100 million a year (Domhoff, 2005, p. 59). Most of the organizations have owners who directly controlled the organization. This correlation between the ownership and direct control lead to certain vested interests.  The concluding finding on the corporate organizations and certain class owning them and landholdings show that corporate community consists of large business tycoon families which have their own vested interests. This upper stratum of the people actually rules the economy in general and country in specific by funding the electioneering and after that affecting the policy making process either directly or indirectly. Basically this corporate class has used its economic power in the defensive mechanism by hiring experts and corporate executives.
This phenomenon reveals the fact that corporate executives intervenes the upper class through their expertise in the business. This cohesion of corporate class with upper class results in both social and economic cohesion. Thus through this the upper class exercise their power as they have the liberty to invest and withdraw money at any juncture and at any source. Above all they can fire any employee giving them a lot of liberty and influence at the most of the American people dependent upon the salary. They also influence over both elected and appointed officials, for the growth and stability of a city, state, or the country.

Domoff without appreciating the class structure interpretation given by Karl Marx tells that there is a social upper class with a lot of implicit control over the governance and administration in the corridors of power. Thus this class can be rightly said the governing class of the US. This ruling class is divided into two different divisions that can be rightly viewed form the existence of two main stream political parties. The fact shows the inherent class consciousness among the governing class and to save their over interests they fund the electioneering of the presidential and other candidates. Apart from this they lobby with in the party structure for their vested interests.  

This social class of the rich people treats other rich as their equalizing social class. By studying the institutions that have membership of these elites like the social register, the clear cut division and differentiation of class structure in the America has been shown. This has been the most clearheaded analysis of the power corridors of America. He also gives the neutral definition of the social class as the people who freely intermarry.

Moving ahead this concept brings in the cohesiveness among the ruling elite. That becomes in the form of intermarriages especially. Apart from this they in the form of joint business ventures. This cohesiveness is good for the power structure of the power corridors and structure of the America. But this proves to be havoc for the public in general. As to safe guard their own vested interests the upper class can go to any extent to save their vested interests. Over all this cohesion is necessary to maintain a social class. Thus it can be argued that the ruling class in order to save their interests can influence the governorate by any means. The interwoven values and ties among them help to do so regardless of which party is in government.  

The Domoff gives independent chunks of the ruling class present in any city and favors his argument with the help of club membership and enrollment at schools. This idea seems bit weak while describing the aristocratic class.   The next step is not as properly researched that the ownership and control of major businesses is the most secret aspect of American society (Domhoff, 2005, p. 38).
The data shown is indecent. Apparently, most business corporations are run by their board of directors. These directors are largely upper class and often have membership of seven or eight boards. It is the essential tool with which monopoly was defeated by capitalism, the directors of major corporations and foundations are approximately the similar people, and a small number of rich families have huge amounts of shares in different companies. This system in reality gives the ruling class an interest in sustaining the economic system as a whole instead of owning single industry and safe guard individual interests and values.

The documentation of the interlocking directorates shows that major corporations have boards that share not only clubs and universities, but in many important cases are actually made up of many of the same people. To show how intertwined these entities are, a study of 311 men directing the major insurance companies found that these men also sat on 1,844 corporate boards as well, including many of the largest  (Domhoff, 2005, p. 54).

On the other hand he mentions the pension and insurance companies and their role is mysterious. As most of the insurance agencies have nonprofit status and dont pay dividends and pool in huge amounts of assets. These are one of the bigger investors in corporations through banks and other investment corporations. And this nexus can be obvious form the socio-economic data of the directors as most of corporations and banks are on the boards of the insurance agencies. In American life particularly and the world in general this in point of fact means that corporations and investment banks and agencies use the capital of the working and middle classes to garner huge profits.

An analysis of the share of wealthiest 1 of adults emphasize that stock market is not worth mentioning relative to the credit market, and that the economic aristocracy is really making its money by ownership of bonds. As Domoff gives the figures of real estate, that the one percent rich owns between 12.3 and 18 of the total amount, but for bonds the figure is around 77. This shows a simple law that the nature of capital is to accumulate. The regressive taxation system of the united states of the America heavily come down like a ton of bricks on the poor and uses the capital to pay interest on government bonds to the ruling elite. Thus in short it shows that ruling elite have entangled the poor in the webs and shackles of the economy and their so called economic regulatory policy. They manufacture any good and sell it open market and on the other hand influence the governmental policies regarding the capital gains and goods. Thus they safeguard their interests on the both sides. The ultimate interest of the ruling class is profit maximization and increase in their economic gains. Its no unusual in any country generally and America especially that national debt has grows with no leaps and bounds.

Additionally, stock ownership is extremely uneven - the richest 2 own 65 of publicly held stock (Domhoff, 2005, p. 45). The argument here is that the less amount of public held stock serves much more evil purposes than democratically distributing profit. This stock offered to people was just for the public relation and to show that the capitalist class and capitalism think of the public welfare and common man. This in turn encouraged consumerism forcing a lot of otherwise intelligent people to stress their friends and acquaintances to go for certain products as being share holders they thought that what is good for their corporation is good for their own pocket.

Domhoff has arguments for America is becoming more unbiased because of shift in power from rich directors to middle-class hired managers. One is the indoctrination in the university which enkindles same values in the middle class as of elites and second the upper class is too small to produce able people. Another mode of intervention is rightly pointed by the author is the charitable organizations linked to big business corporations. These are most of tax shelters but influence the governments educational and health policies. They run foundation televisions and motivational and research programs ultimately influencing the minds of the people. Corporate industry also influence the government though media campaigns and advertisement.

The corporate class or the ruling elite holds the control of media, education, corporations, banks, and foundations through investment of their capital. This shows enough evidence that the upper class in America is the ruling and governing class.

Coming to the current scenario as the author have argued that the ruling elite governs the country and it is also not satisfactory to argue that the president and his executive team is selected by the elites. The might work in the interests of the working class but in process of selection a lot of other  factors are involved. The ruling elite involves in campaign donations and after wards placing themselves at key administrative posts. Though ruling elite is cohesive but a lot of crucial differences lie among themselves as well and that ultimately leads to the public benefit.