In American politics, it takes an enormous amount of money to win campaigns, and the rise of the “Super PACs” is allowing the wealthy to exert even more influence over the political process than they did before.
When you examine the results of federal elections over the past several decades, you quickly discover that the candidate that raises the most money almost always wins. Wealthy individuals are limited by law as to how much money they can give directly to a political campaign, but there are no limits on how much money they can give to Super PACs.
During the 2012 election season, some of these Super PACs actually have more money than the campaigns of the candidates that they support do. Buying the vote is not illegal in America, and these Super PACs are buying huge amounts of advertising in key states.
Unfortunately, most Americans have never learned to think for themselves. Instead, they let the television do much of their thinking for them. If their trusted friend, the television, tells them to vote a certain way, then that is what they are likely to do.
Super PACs are much more likely to run negative ads than the actual candidates are, and we have already seen very negative ads dramatically move the poll numbers in some of the states. Sadly, as long as very negative ads keep working people are going to keep using them.
Super PACs are supposed to be completely and totally “independent” of the campaigns that they support, but the reality is that many of these Super PACs are run and staffed by former top aides of the candidates.
Some of the candidates are relying on the Super PACs to be the “attack dogs” while they sit back and try to maintain a more “positive” image. If a Super PAC goes too far, a candidate can simply claim that he does not have any control over that Super PAC.
If money did not influence elections, then people would stop giving so much of it to the campaigns and to the Super PACs. The truth is that money does influence elections, and when wealthy individuals and big corporations are allowed to pour millions upon millions of dollars into these Super PACs it gives them a much, much larger say in the outcome of our elections than you and I have.
When Mitt Romney stated that he was “not concerned about the very poor“, he may have misspoke, but there was some truth to what he was saying. Mitt Romney and the other candidates don’t need the poor. What they need is to keep the flow of money coming from the rich so that they can buy the votes of the poor.
When you have a very high percentage of “sheeple” in a society, the hearts and minds of the people can be bought. Our horrific education system has dumbed-down the general population, and most Americans spend their days in an entertainment-induced haze. Critical thinking is in short supply in the United States today, and most Americans are more than happy to have someone else tell them what to think.
Politics has become a war of money, and Super PACs are “bazookas” in that war.
The following are 12 facts about Super PACs that will blow your mind….
#1 Sheldon Adelson and members of his family have already given more than $10 million to Winning Our Future – the Super PAC that is promoting Newt Gingrich.
$10 million dollars sounds like a lot of money, but a recent CNN article put these donations into perspective….
Recent estimates peg his net worth at around $20 billion. That means his $10 million donation was exactly one twentieth of one percent of his net worth. Yes, 0.05%.
That would be like a millionaire giving a $500 donation. Or a $50 gift for someone worth $100,000.
#2 Texas businessman Harold C. Simmons has given more than $14 million to Republican Super PACs during this election season.
#3 Overall, well over $50 million has been spent by Super PACs so far and we have not even gotten to the general election yet.
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