The Elephant in the Room

Last week, and again this week, while people have flooded across our southern border, as the conflict between Israel and Hamas has grown in intensity, and ML-17 was shot down over eastern Ukraine, President Obama has had a flood of his own.  He’s attended multiple and numerous fundraisers to raise millions of dollars for the Democratic Party.  

Now, the news outlets have started to focus on the “optics” of how it looks for the President to raise so much money for his party at a time when so many things need his attention.  Of course, he’s not the first President to do this type of thing.  Similar questions were asked when President Bush was slow in visiting the site after Hurricane Katrina.

The commentators and pundits all express different thoughts on whether the President should be in Washington DC to run and respond to the world events of the day.  They ask, “with modern day communications, does the President’s location matter?”  Maybe it does, and maybe it doesn’t. I believe the important point is something else.  It’s not Democrat or Republican.  It’s not partisan at all.

The “elephant in the room” is the damage that money is doing to our American democracy.  The good news is that we voters can “cure” this ailment with our votes.  Let’s practice using “Voting Alert  Beacon #5:  The Money.”  

Below, I’ve copied in the Beacon and add some comments.

Beacon #5: THE MONEY

DO vote for candidates who accept and receive contributions from individual citizens.

[Comment:  The fundraisers that President Obama has been attending recently require attendees to pay in the “ballpark”  of $10,000 per plate.  Any person who pays that amount becomes a “stand-alone” special interest group.  Or, at the very least, everyone attending that kind event is forming a de facto PAC for the evening by their contribution and presence.  In fact, these dinner events are sometimes sponsored by special interest groups or PACs.]

• DON'T vote for candidates that receive and accept money from PACs, Unions, Businesses, etc.

[Comment:  This speaks for itself.  Go to the Federal Election Committee link on the right side of this blog and check to see which candidates take large amounts from “non” individuals or special interest groups.  You won’t be surprised to see most often the incumbents are the most guilty.]

• Vote for candidates with the smallest average contribution from individual citizens.

[Comment:  Again, take a look at the Federal Election Committee link on the right side of this blog.  You can see how much money individuals are contributing to each candidate.  Then, divide the total dollar amount by the number of contributors.   Using “Beacon #5:  The Money,” vote for the candidate with the smallest average individual contributor amount.]

• We can take the improper money and resulting influence out of our government by using our vote effectively.

[Comment:  Folks, we voters are the only ones who can get this done.  I believe we can do it and that we will.  So, let’s get started!]

Spread the word!  Tell your friends about the Voting Alert Beacons!

. . .  remember that America’s best days aren’t behind her.   America’s best days are ahead of her.  They always have been and always will be.

Dave

Copyright © 2014 by David William Wygant. All rights reserved.