Writing at Forbes.com, Todd Ganos observes something important and far too seldom commented upon by writers in the elite media — that is, the very concrete facts of the practical, working relationship between capital/Big Business and the state. Ganos offers us a study conducted by no less a stronghold of radicalism than the National Bureau of Economic Research, which set out to see just how consistently our lawmakers in the upper house could be relied upon to come through for the powerful rich. Looking at 6,000+ Senate votes over two decades, the report found — shock! — that, in Ganos’ words, you guessed it, “our senators’ votes are influenced.” Imagine that. The study thus stands to bear out the consistent refrain of market anarchism throughout its history in the United States, that rather than restraining big business for the common good, the state is what enables and sustains its continued domination of economic life. You can find the rest of Ganos’ piece here.