This is an obscene and ungodly amount of money. Really.
In August, Obama raised $66 Million. At the end of August, Obama possessed $87 million in the bank. If you add $150 Million to this total you can understand why Senator Obama purchased a 30 minute time block on NBC, CBS, and Fox and possesses a 4 to 1 advantage in television advertising.
This morning on FOX News Sunday, John McCain argued that this money would lead to a political scandal. He stated the fundraising total completely broke:
“whatever idea we had after Watergate to keep the cost and spending on campaigns under control. First time, first time since the Watergate scandal. And I can tell you this: that has unleashed now in presidential campaigns a new flood of spending that will then cause a scandal and then we will fix it again. But Sen. Obama has broken it.”
McCain's comment is not pure of motive though as Obama's fundraising conflicts with McCain's sense of honor. McCain, as you remember, is half of McCain-Feingold, a law that, until the Supreme Court partially gutted, restricted the amount of money a person could contribute to a political campaign. By reducing the influence one person, read corporation, could have, you reduce the appearance of corruption as, cynically speaking, no one with or of money can be of good motive.
Some conservatives supported campaign finance because they thought it provided them with an advantage as they believed it would be harder for Democrats to raise money. Of course, they never heard of the internet, or even the internets, which has provided Democrats such as Howard Dean and Barack Obama with a great campaign advantage though only Obama has been able to take advantage of it. Money is not enough in politics. See Romney, Mitt.
For McCain money is not speech; it does not reflect a person's support of a campaign. Even though the zenith of our 18th century political institution, i.e. the electoral college, ensures that only a certain number of voters who reside in "Swing States" matter, McCain objects to the ability that some people could possess more influence than other voters. Instead, McCain believes that excessive money in political campaigns represents evil and corruption to the point that if we limit it, we will have a just political system that is more egalitarian in nature where people can contribute more equally and there will be a level playing field for candidates. No one person, again read corporation, can donate to a party and then seek a competitive edge in the market, or in Iraq (Halliburton), or on Wall Street (bail-out, er... rescue).
This has been the mantra of liberals for years and it clearly has hurt them and will hurt them in 2008. See Obama, Barack.
Back to McCain, corruption is the worst; the most unethical political sin. If corruption can be protected under the First Amendment, then what good is the First Amendment? Hence, McCain-Feingold. Who should care about lobbyists, most of whom work for the McCain campaign, when you could care about campaign finance regulation and its threat to democracy. Some person could gain special favor just because of a lack of ethics...
But, "my friends," my question to you is, why is campaign finance worse than other forms of unethical political sins that corrupt democracy, such as negative campaigning? Senator McCain? Why are political contributions worse than false political smears based on "religion," "socialism," or "terrorism"?
These outright lies corrupt the political process as do false accusations of voter fraud. At Slate, Dahlia Lithwick argues that complaints and investigations into ACORN and other problems with voter registration is an attempt to "undermine voter confidence in the elections system as a whole." And what of Republican "voter fraud" in California? Is this not a political sin?
Talk by Governor Palin of groups "stealing the election" undermines the electoral process before the elections. Isn't this the sin of that campaign finance reform is meant to protect us from?
I will wait for your denouncement of Sarah Palin and her corruption of the political process. As well as your apology for denouncing your own false accusations, which undermines the political process. And your denouncement of the Republican fraud in California. All of these threaten the "moral fabric of democracy" as your precious campaign finance does.
Update: This is a clip is McCain on Fox News today. Chris Wallace asks McCain about a Robo-Call is campaign is using. The call is based on a lie of omission as it suggest Obama worked with Ayers when Ayers was a part of the Weathermen. By removing the context of the relationship, it alters the meaning of the argument.
Why is this not unethical Mr. McCain? Is there is to be regulation, why would this not be regulated? Isn't this a threat to democracy?
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