Campaign Fundraising: Democracy for Sale

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There is one sure fire way to know that the political campaign season has started in the United States, and it simply involves turning on a television. There is no need to turn to change the channel to one of the news networks. Watch the advertisements and eventually words like “liar”, “cheater” and “thief” will blare from the television as a political attack advertisement airs. These attack advertisements, better known as political attack ads, have become a staple in American politics and a nuisance for the majority of citizens. A survey I did showed when a political attack ad aired 82% of people tuned out the ad; 10% muted their televisions; and the remaining 8% turned off their televisions (Kang). So why do Americans have to endure the increasing number of political attack ads? Predominantly because politicians can afford to pay for them through largely unregulated campaign contributions, known as soft money. This lack of regulation of campaign fund raising is not only an issue because it helps pay for these unwanted advertisements, but also because it puts into question who are our politicians truly representing. Are they really representing the American citizen who on average donates 500 dollars to political campaigns? Or are they representing the corporations, political action committees that in 2009 helped pay for 2.6 billion dollars spent on political advertising in 2008 (Seelye)? What should be evident is that greater clarity and foresight is needed in campaign fundraising, not only to curb political attack ads, but to also promote the health of our democracy.

Attempts have been made to regulate campaign contributions, the first major step was made in 1971 with the Federal Election Campaign Act, also known as FECA. FECA...

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... Attacks Kerry's War Record." FactCheck.org. 06 Aug. 2004. Web. 08 May 2010. .

"The FEC and the Federal Campaign Finance Law." Federal Election Commission, 4 June 2010. Web. 15 Jan. 2010. .

"The Supreme Court Removes Important Limits on Campaign Finance." Washingtonpost.com. The Washington Post, 22 Jan. 2010. Web. 12 June 2010. .

Samples, John Curtis. The Fallacy of Campaign Finance Reform. Chicago: University of Chicago, 2006. Print.

Seelye, Katharine Q. "About $2.6 Billion Spent on Political Ads in 2008." NYTimes.com. The New York Times, 16 Sept. 2008. Web. 4 June 2010. .

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