"About six blocks."

That's how far away big-time Washington, D.C. lobbyists are being kept away from the Democratic National Convention this week in Charlotte, according to the New York Times. When he took office, President Obama put restrictions on lobbyist access to the White House. It was (and is) a noble directive, but as they always seem to do in our flawed system where big money special interests and their lobbyists have the ear of elected officials, they find a way to be around (even if not in direct contact).

But it isn't just the lobbyists who still get access to powerful DNC-goers; major donors also reap the benefit of donating big bucks by getting access to the likes for former President Bill Clinton and First Lady Michelle Obama. While it may not be as egregious as last week's RNC, which fully embraced big money donors like Shel Adelson, it does go to show that if there's one thing the two major parties have in common, it's that they are very much embroiled in our big money system.