Oligarchical societies are unstable societies, as they arise when powerful elites no longer care about the common good and instead pursue their own self-interest. While oligarchs can manipulate the will of the people for some time, the people historically wise up once the abuses become too much to bear.
The revolt of the common people is what oligarchs most fear and they will mobilize all of their political and financial resources to keep it from happening. While this dynamic has been recorded for thousands of years, it is no less relevant to American society today. Modern American oligarchs — who made their billions on Wall Street or in Silicon Valley — will do all that they can to maintain their position under the status quo.
South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott is the latest beneficiary of oligarchical largesse, raising an extraordinary amount of money in the few short days since he announced his presidential campaign in Charleston.