What Do the 2016 Candidates Really Stand For?

If you were to ask any average American how much it costs to run for president, most would know it's "a lot". In 2008, Obama spent 750 million on his campaign. In 2012, he spent 1.123 billion. WHAT. That's a lot of money, a lot more than I ever could have theorized before knowing. The emphasis behind this amount of money is where it all comes from. Nearly all politicians do not pay out of pocket for their campaign hence the donors and fundraisers. This money makes the success of the candidate possible. Therefor if a donor asks the politician to change a few views here in there, how much is complied? Using "if" doesn't even justify the situation, it's regrettably clear that donors do ask a few favors for their millions, but how much is asked; how far has, does, or can lobbying go? If you were running for president, could you say no to a guy that contributed a couple million, maybe even 20 or 100 million to your campaign? The unfortunate reality is, with the recent massive convergence in media via internet, it takes a lot to reach people on the multitude of platforms available. Your average Joe could never run for president if they weren't prepared to drop a billion in one way or another. Because the cost to run is so high, does one change a few views along the way for victory or does one risk a campaign by missing out on several donors for sticking with a view or stance. One of the most prudent questions is how the favors might continue into the presidency.

In the US, money is nearly always needed to execute authority. The businesses of America hold a large share of US wealth. The government actively works with business in order to enact many of their policies. In my personal opinion, the US businesses are the Kings and Queens of America, they have political power, stay in the family, and aquire riches beyond belief. For example, Walmart is currently the leading cooperation via revenue. It has been in the same family since 1962 when Sam Walton opened the first. In 2015, they made 485.65 billion.

To avoid an overall pessimistic article, the US still provides freedom unlike any other nation. Despite lobbying and corruption we still have a large say in our government. Lobbying isn't exactly a new thing, pay offs and corruption have been going on and have been exposed centuries ago. Upon deciding on who to vote for, it could be valuable to look into the top donors beyond him or Hillary. There is usually a reason people will invest several millions in a candidate, and it's almost always because they reflect a view or have a plan that will benefit that donor into the presidency. For example, if big oil is the top donor of a candidate, it's pretty clear what the candidates plans are on alternate energies or lack there of. Likewise it isn't good to let these aspects be a deciding factor, in this day in age it is prudent to still be mindful of it. Despite Donald Trump's many controversial statements and views, this is most likely why he has been leading for so long, people know he has no one pulling strings. I hate long articles as a writer and reader. I simply wanted to provoke some thought processes for the reader. I wish all voters luck and confidence in their vote, and remember voting on a presidential election isn't they only thing we can do to change something!