Big Money Is Cropping Up In Small US Elections

[xchrom]

http://www.businessinsider.com/r-big-money-crops-up-in-small-elections-in-the-united-states-2014-10



ARVADA Colorado (Reuters) - Political groups that took advantage of loosened campaign-finance rules spent hundreds of millions of dollars in the 2012 U.S. presidential election. This year, they're cropping up in state and local races as well.

Wealthy individuals and interest groups of all stripes are increasingly setting up political committees that can steer unlimited sums to small-dollar contests for state legislature, sheriff and school board.

Four years after the Supreme Court ruled that Congress cannot restrict spending by political groups not directly affiliated with candidates, the "Super PACs" and other spending committees that sprung up in the wake of that decision are becoming a fixture in races farther down on ballot sheets, where their money can have a greater impact.

In some cases, they are looking to bypass a gridlocked Washington that likely will not be more productive after the Nov. 4 congressional elections. In other cases, local operators are adopting tactics first developed at the national level.



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/r-big-money-crops-up-in-small-elections-in-the-united-states-2014-10#ixzz3HiU9YAMF

[hobbit709]

1. There's out of state PAC money coming into local city elections here in Austin.

[merrily]

3. Maybe the most liberal city in Texas and the capitol. Of course, there's money coming in.

A boatload of money from charter school organization in California dumped on one candidate became a big issue in the last mayoral primary in Boston (Boston is so blue, there was only one huge primary to narrow down the field. IIRC, only one of 20+ hopefuls running in that primary was NOT registered as a Democrat.)

I don't think any of the candidates ran against charter schools, but some were more pro charter than others. Luckily, the one who got that money did not win the general.

[hobbit709]

4. the money's coming in for one of the developer supported candidates.

[merrily]

5. Real estate, charter schools--the common thread is that

people are "investing" in elections in hopes that the winner will help them get richer.


Our mission is to find a way to make that a bad bargain for politicians to make. At least on the local level, getting voted out of office or primaried like Cantor doesn't just mean you get a better paying job with a lobbying firm or think tank. Maybe that's coming, too, though. So, we need to light a fire under ourselves.

[merrily]

2. If you want to own an entire country as big and powerful as the US, you have to invest.

The lesson here folks, is that we have invest our money, too. We have less of it, but there are more of us and we have more people-oriented ideas to offer the public.

Getting to the polls on election day is great-yippee--but it's nowhere near enough. We have to be organized and united and ready to part to some effort year round and some bucks. If you think it matters. (And if you don't think it matters, think again.)

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but this ain't your great grandpappy's USA any more. Voting is necessary, but not enough.

[bemildred]

6. Reform comes bottom up, and that is what the dark money is fighting. nt