Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Is Obama buying the election?

Okay, so we've all heard the conversation turn to whether Barack Obama is buying the election. Now, looking past the fact that this talk started when the polls started showing Obama winning, lets talk about the money in his campaign.

First Obama decides to forgo public financing. And people are still talking about it, and I guess rightfully so. Maybe. As I see it (and of course, I'm bias), Obama said he would think about public financing. Then, making a political decision, he decided against it. But, when thinking about how to fund your political campaign, what other decision would you make other than a political one?

But when people hit on the topic on buying an election, I want to remind them of Mitt Romney. He spent a lot of money in Iowa and New Hampshire, but it didn't help him win either of them. Obama outspent Hilary Clinton in Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania, but Hilary won all three of those in the primaries.

But looking at Mitt Romeny and even Hilary Clinton who had to dip into their own pocket to pay for there campaign, no one talked about them trying to buy the election. But Obama gets $150 million in September alone off the strength of a $86 average donation, and he is trying to buy the election. With what? Money he got from...people who...freely gave it to them to...spend on his campaign. So yes, he is buying the election with money people (including me) gave him so he could buy the election. This is American politics and money equals power.

Money helps you get your message out, but if it isn't a good message or your message doesn't swing people away from your opponent, money isn't going to win you an election. I could even give you Ross Perot.

Speaking of Perot (and buying the election), we have Obama making his prime time solo debut. Now you have people, like Elizabeth Hasselbeck, blasting the idea of Obama having that 30 minute "infomercial" on TV tonight.
"Obviously both sides are trying to run and create image. So if we use this as, so they both have funds and are creating an image, making sure their candidates are where they need to be seen, as they need to be. I find it completely then repulsive to then - if we want to look at spending - see how Barack Obama now is going to spend what $3 million on two thirty minute ads that are going to run this week." - Elizabeth Hasselbeck
What I don't understand is why they are mad. Well, okay, not really. But it's Palin that wants to get around the "media filter" so why are they now kinda pissy about Obama going around the media? You have John McCain saying "No one will delay the World Series game with an infomercial when I'm president."

But I guess it is getting down to the wire. Even Barack Obama is calling out McCain's erratic message:
"Now, because he knows that his economic theories don't work, he's been spending these last few days calling me every name in the book. Lately he's called me a socialist for wanting to roll-back the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans so we can finally give tax relief to the middle class. I don't know what's next. By the end of the week he'll be accusing me of being a secret communist because I shared my toys in kindergarten. I shared my peanut butter and jelly sandwich." - Barack Obama
So yeah, we are buying the election. How many peanut butter and jelly sandwich's you think it will take? Maybe he will ask for more peanut butter, jelly and bread. Then we'll win!

No comments:

Post a Comment