The Need for a Political Investor Class
Conservatives tend to look at political donations the way they look at giving to charity or paying dues in an organization. Politicians and political groups capitalize on this.
Thus, political fundraising letters have the same feel as direct mail from your favorite charity: “I need your help to carry on the fight against Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and her liberal cohorts.” Conservatives have also gotten used to political groups borrowing persuasion methods from ransom notes: “If we don’t raise $100,000 by midnight Tuesday, we’ll be unable to stop the destruction of this country by the far left.” Other letters try guilt: “I have to wonder if you’re really committed to the values we share.”
The effectiveness of such fundraising methods has waned for a variety of reasons: the fundraising scandals at the Republican National Committee; the National Republican Senatorial Committee throwing in behind Charlie Crist only for Crist to leave the GOP and take the money with him; and the National Republican Congressional Committee’s wasted half-million-dollar investment in Dede Scozzafava, who endorsed the Democrats. Thus, while the GOP is favored to gain seats this fall, its donor base is not turning a political edge into a cash advantage.
If conservatives want to change their fundraising fortunes, they must change the way political giving is viewed. Political giving should be considered an investment in the future of the country. Leaders who govern according to conservative principles and groups that forward conservative values help to preserve and maintain an environment that allows for economic freedom and the preservation of the American way of life.
To begin thinking like investors, conservatives need to look at three key points:
1. What they hope to achieve
A donation to a candidate who faces token opposition will have little return. The only thing you’re giving the incumbent is an “attaboy” or “attagirl,” and money they don’t need. Donations to a candidate in a tight race, however, can actually turn a race.
We should also support candidates who may not be able to win their race but are strong prospects for future political success. An example is the Senate campaign of Indiana state Senator Marlin Stutzman, who received generous support from conservatives. While Stutzman lost to Dan Coats in the Senate race, his strong second place finish led local Republicans to nominate him to replace Mark Souder in the U.S. House.
The same goes for political organizations. Before conservatives give to any organization, be it the Heritage Foundation, the American Conservative Union, or the Family Research Council, they should have a strong grasp of what the organization’s goals are and what it’s doing to achieve them.
I disbelieve that the RNC knows better than I my best political dollar value investments.
The obvious example is PJTV subscriptions and Bill Whittle’s new movie company. Far better than paying for 5 star hotel rooms.
Conservatives should look at giving money to candidates as an investment in the future.
As long as politicians act as brokers for big business and big government and ignore the Rights of constituents under the Constitution my money stays in my pocket, what little of it they “allow” me to keep.
Under the present system, I look at such a call as an up front bribe that may or may not have the desired effect. Relative morality and relativism in general have eroded any sense of personal honor or individual integrity or even commitment to the Constitution in the context of the oath these swine take willingly. Sorry, when I get some indication that as a citizen, my Rights come before those that can be paid for, that’s when I ‘might’ consider such an “investment.” Not before.
And what will determine a fair return on my investment..? what interest will i receive…or access to which govt contracts..? Maybe i can purchase a position as ambassador, which presidents have notoriously used to generate cash slush funds.
This is not a new concept, it has been driving politics in the USA since 1790.
We’ve been “investing” in so-called “conservative” candidates for years, and what are the returns to date — an ever increasing socialistic, big-government environment and a bunch of largely timid, cowardly Republicans afraid to take head-on their political opponents or the media.
Pile up enough manure in one spot, and don’t be surprised when the flies congregate.
What Washington needs is less money directed there. It needs to be dismantled as a center of political and financial power. It will either happen as a result of voluntary cessation of deficit spending and unconstitutional activities (ha!) or forced austerity through the collapse of the bond market and the entire financial system.
It isn’t a simple matter of “supporting the right candidate” or “putting the right people in place”. Washington, much like the Borg in Star Trek, assimilate even the best and most well-intentioned of bright-eyed candidates. It is a beast that will not give up its power and refuses to cease its consumption of the economy.
Add Scott Brown to the list why conservatives don’t donate.
The Need for a Political Investor Class;
Conservatives should look at giving money
to candidates as an investment in the future.
The future is now;
The Nov. elections are the last ones that matter.
After that, invest in the manufacturing economy,
before the State taxes/Inflates your money away.
This article is accurate. However the financial investor class has newsletters and stock sites that provide graphical representations of the “value” of their investments in stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. For a political investor class same is needed.
But that itself costs money. Someone will need to do the legwork on primary candidates and the analysis must be done for each like in point #2 above. This will then need to be aggregated into charts, and there must be agreement on the chart valuations. This will not happen overnight — but there may be a business model that would involve online advertising that might work.
So far, as a regular citizen, my investment in national level Republicans hasn’t really gotten a whole lot of return.
Massachusetts republican candidate and Harvard Physicist Mike Stopa predicts 300 republicans in the house this Jan. on the Sean Hannity Show.
youtube
“Congress should support Arizona, Mike Stopa”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Umx8FFLQGRQ
Adam, I enjoyed your article. Is there an organization that does what you recommend, whose conclusions I could rely on? I’m not eager to do that amount of research on my own.
The Greedy Old Predator party is just as evil as is the Jackass party. They do all the same evils as the the Dems; just a little less blatantly- and more hypocritically.
The only candidate worse than Obama would be Satan himself. But the GOP is readying to offer us a dimwit housewife from Alaska, or one of two religious nuts, neither of whom has a defensible philosophy. What kind of an electorate wants a babykilling sex pervert for president? Ours! What kind of electorate wants a sociopathic communist for president? Ours!
The point is, our values must be raised drastically before we can hope for beneficial change. Continue to elect criminal mentalities and then wonder why your country is deteriorating so rapidly?