Show Me The Money

While it may have very well been true, the perception has always been that the Republican party was the "money party". The party of the wealthy and affluent businessmen. The Democratic Party was perceived to be the working class party. The party that looked out for the poor and underprivileged. Here is what the elected members of both Parties have in common. They are all filthy stinking rich. Beyond that fact, those old notions have lead most to believe that the Republicans crush the Democrats in the campaign fundraising arena. While this may have been true as recently as the 2000 and 2004 campaigns, it seems that times are changing. At of the end of March, when the last totals were released, Democrat Barack Obama has raised nearly 235 million dollars. Democrat Hillary Clinton has raised about 189 million dollars, while Republican John McCain has only raised about 76.5 million dollars. I guess this means that those poor old Democrats are not so poor any longer. The real shocker is just how much in total is spent to elect a President. While back in 1976 it cost a mere 171 million dollars to elect a President, estimates put the 2008 election at about one billion dollars. I can't help but think that there is a much better way to spend that money.