The Money Machine
One of the strongest markers that this may be a Democratic year is not simply the surge in registered Democratic voters, and the collapse in Republican registrations among young people. It’s the money. Democrats don’t like to dwell on this but into the 1980s, using direct mail and other techniques, the number of Republican small donors outnumbered Democratic supporters, and indeed Democrats from “red” states found themselves flying to Hollywood and appealing to trial lawyers and (some) labor unions to match this broad Republican base. Now it’s different. A trivia contest: Q. Guess how much money Barack Obama raised in February? A. $55 million. Q. How much of this was raised on the internet?A. $45 million. Q. How many fundraisers did Obama have to attend to raise this staggering sum?A. One. For more, read this.
I’m continually appalled by the sums of money spent on this campaign — and we haven’t even begun the real one yet. How many hundreds of millions have Clinton and Obama raised and spent to win the nomination? And what does it say of our priorities as a nation that, with states, towns, and even the Feds (occasionally) crying poor, and unable to fund needed services (think of transportation, for one, along with medical care and schools and all those others) that we not only permit the political fundraisers, but applaud those who do it best? Almost makes those hedge fund managers and failing CEOs with ever-rising compensation packages look good.