How Much Does It Cost To Elect A President?

It's still more than two months until the presidential election and I can officially say that I am so OVER it already!  I have always felt like voting for president is one of the greatest honors bestowed upon US citizens.  For the past four presidential elections, I can say that I have been proud to exercise my right to vote.  I loved the "rock the vote" campaigns and couldn't understand why anyone would choose not to vote.  My gosh how my views have changed over the past sixteen years.

I don't know if it's because of my advanced age or the never ending coverage, but this year, I'm paying a little more attention to the candidates.  And you know what?  I do not like them.  I do not want to vote for either of them.  When I cast my vote, it's all or nothing, and I simply can not pick a candidate that I would want to support 100%.  Does anyone else feel this way?

I know that it's human nature to change your mind, but come on people, let's be real for a minute.  Doesn't it seem a little insincere to change your stance on political hot buttons (like gay marriage) in the months leading up to the day that will seal your fate for the next four years?  Obama is more wishy washy than my washing machine and that thing rocks the whole house during the spin cycle!  And, if you fell for the whole "we're bringing the troops home" thing, you may want to ask yourself how is that possible when Casey's unit is about to head out for another nine month tour in Afghanistan. 

Oy, and Romney, bless his heart, I'm beginning to think he doesn't have a shred of personality in that big ol' head of his.  Not to mention bringing in the younger, hansom vice presidential candidate hasn't helped balance out the old, white-ness Romney brings to the table.  Especially since that crazy guy from Missouri went and made the most idiotic statements about rape and abortion that I have ever heard.  Yeah, didn't you hear that Aiken and Ryan have been known to stick together on topics like redefining rape?  Seriously, do the bright lights cause temporary stupidity or are these people really that stupid?  I want to propose a new law, a law that says all elected or appointed political figures must submit to a standard IQ test before taking office.  And, of course, they need to pass said test. 

Obviously, I think our government is a real hot mess.  It's times like this when I wish I'd paid a lot more attention in my American Government class.  I can certainly see why older people say they went back to school "for the fun of it".  Maybe then I'd be able to understand how everything got to be this way.  I do know why things aren't going to make a rapid change for the better.  M-O-N-E-Y.

Do you know how much money is being raised in the name of Presidential Fundraising?  The astronomical amount of money powerful, wealthy folks are willing to throw around in order to support their favorite candidate?  Well, I wanted to know so I turned to my good friend google and just about lost my lunch when I saw the totals. 

• In an ABC News article, I read that tickets to one fundraiser were $500 a head for a crowd of 500.  That's $250,000 if everyone paid.  If any of those 500 wanted to attend dinner, the ticket would set them back $35,800 a piece.  Yes, I'm taking those figures directly from the ABC News article. 
• I'm not sure this is refutable, but it's definitely worth reading the article from US News about one fundraiser who can not account for where his money comes from.  Isn't that, like, a big red flag to the IRS?  Can someone say "audit"?  I especially enjoyed seeing the photo of his registered business.   
• Another fundraiser comes at a cost of $2,500 to $10,000 per ticket, as reported by the Hollywood Reporter.
• And Politico says that you can attend yet another fundraiser for a mere $2,500 per person, or $10,000 as a VIP, and a measly $25,000 for dinner.  What in the world are they serving for dinner? 

So, it must be true that money makes the world go 'round.  And it sickens me. 

Doesn't anyone in the political game sit down and look at the income of the average American family?  I don't know about you, but I'm fed up with the disconect between reality and this fantasy world of the wealthy.  No wonder they can't balance the budget!  If I had an extra $35,800 lying around, I could pay my mortgage for about five and a half years.  How long could you feed your family if you had $25,000?   I could take my family of four to Cracker Barrel every night for almost two and a half years on that budget.  Man, how I would love to see what an Extreme Couponer could do with that kind of money!

Folks, it's time for a wake up call.  All those high priced commercials and radio ads are not geared toward the wealthy people who have contributed mega bucks to the campaigns.  Oh, no, those political ads are geared toward us, the working families in America.  You may not be able to donate money towards your favorite candidate, but you sure can use your vote to hit them where it hurts most - the voting booth.

Candidates, here's my free advise for you: go to the Walmarts and Dollar Generals along your campaign trail, go to the laundromats, the grocery stores (and I'm not talking about Whole Foods here), stop by the nursing homes, and the local fast food joints and take a good look around. Talk to those employees and those customers, because those are the people with the most voting power.  And I'm willing to bet they don't like the things taking place in our government.  Not one tiny bit. 

So, come election day, who will I be voting for?  Well, ideally, I'd like a candidate who supports gay marriage and a woman's right to choose, one that believes folks who have to sweat for their paycheck should benefit most at tax time, and has a real solution to Medicare and the national debt.  I'd like a firm stance on gun control; seriously, no one needs to own a high powered rifle.  (If you want to play with high powered rifles, go down to the local Army/Navy/Marine/Air Force recruiting center and sign up.  Otherwise, your dumb ass doesn't need a high powered rifle to shoot in your little back yard.  Your neighbors with children will thank me.)  Oh, and most of all, my ideal candidate has to have an unwavering support of the military.  Is that too much to ask?  Apparently, it is!