How many billionaires does it take to get Elected?

1. 89

   Will Apseposted 11 years ago

   Well if the office is the President of the US, 1 or 2 is not enough.
   
   Story from a few weeks ago:
   
   Gingrich told ABC News Mitt Romney came out on top during the GOP primaries because “In the end, he had, I think, sixteen billionaires and we had one.”
   
   “We’re in a situation where if you’re really rich, you have an enormous, and I think unfair, advantage,” the former House Speaker explained. “The trick is not to cripple the rich, the trick is to empower the middle class.”
   
   Apparently Romney has 35 billionaires behind him now.
   
   http://pinterest.com/pcactionfund/mitt- … e-backers/

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   1. 77

      Mighty Momposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Gee, ya think Newt's changing his spots?
      Think he would be willing to stand up for repeal of Citizens United?

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      galleryofgraceposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      In answer to your question- It takes 2 billionaires! One to blindfold the public and another to send the absentee ballots to convicted felons.

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   3. 72

      rhamsonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      This is so true and the electorate just sit back and sleep on the watch.  The money is what is at the heart of these campaigns and the electorate think that the candidate that wins will do the job they were thought to be "elected" but really they wound up to be bought for. There is a big check the contributors are anxious to cash when their boy is elected and if you still think this is the "land of the free" just remember what free buys you.

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      rickyliceaposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I think we should change the electoral college system to where the person with the most billionaire backers wins the election.

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         Mighty Momposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         No change required, apparently.

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      Wayne Brownposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      We are a nation that lives and dies with name recognition and visibility.  The common man with the best ideas in the world cannot garner the support necessary to seek the office of president.  Those who desire "equality" might work on that one but let us not attack it until we collect all the money we can working on curing world hunger.  Put 50 people in a room for 50 years and see what comes out of it.  Only a handful at best can garner enough support to be elected to a leadership role in the room and the longer that room exists the worse the odds get because more and more in the room begin to expect more and more from the person which they are willing to elect.  Eventually, anyone with a moral sense, drops out rather than lie in order to tell the rest what they "want to hear".  Such is the case with what we have in the White House today. Far too many people want to hear something so badly that they imagine whatever is said must fulfill that wish.  In doing so they ignore the costs and the burdens imposed on all individuals when those overzealous promises are made and kept.  Eventually that road leads to only one place....destruction and distinction. WB

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         Wizard Of Whimsyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Utter poppycock and dystopian drivel, Wayne.  As if a Romney wouldn't be ten times worse for this country while his plutocrats exploit even more of the middle class and drive yet more nails in America's coffin.   
         
         Mitt Romney Tax Plan Helps The Rich The Most: Analysis
         * Romney tax plan cuts 20 percent for all income groups
         * Those making over $1 million benefit most under plan
         * Romney hasn't spelled out how to fund tax cuts
         
         http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/0 … 27909.html
         
         
         
         The fact is austerity hawks like yourself have just been proven to be all wrong about "government spending" and I'm not talking about Paul Krugman, but rather a conservative-leaning think tank The American enterprise Institute . . .
         
         American Enterprise Institute: U.S. Austerity Measures Hurting Broader Economy
         http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/3 … 19675.html

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            rhamsonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            

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2. 89

   Will Apseposted 11 years ago

   I just went to see how many billionaires Obama has this time around and apparently it stands at something like 30, according to the Washington Post.
   
   And of course, Obama would never have got the Democratic Nomination without the billionaires who funded him 4 years ago.
   
   So essentially, US citizens only get the chance to vote for candidates who have been selected by the very, very wealthy.
   
   Is this anything like democracy?

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   1. 66

      Ralph Deedsposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      That's a good question.

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3. 72

   lorlie6posted 11 years ago

   Umm, 1?

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4. 91

   peoplepower73posted 11 years ago

   According to Forbes, there are 400 people in America who own more of the wealth than the bottom 50% of the population.  Those 400 people are worth 1.37 trillion dollars, while the bottom half of America is worth 1.26 trillion dollars. Put another way, those 400 people own more wealth than 150 million Americans. Anyone of them could buy and sell not only the president, but the whole government. Six members of the Walton Family alone are worth 89 billion dollars. According to the Citizens United ruling, money equates to free speech.  That's a whole lot of freedom of speech!

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5. 61

   Wizard Of Whimsyposted 11 years ago

   Money isn't the only issue!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

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6. 89

   Will Apseposted 11 years ago

   Sloganeering is a real conversation killer...

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      Wizard Of Whimsyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Apologies, Will—you're right, of course, but in a billionaires' oligarchy or a plutocracy (take your pick) a democracy will always be subverted to do the bidding of the moneyed interests.  The system was destined to collapse because it's out of balance and wobbling terribly ever since the GOP stacked the Supreme Court and bribed Congress into deregulating commerce. So I see your question as moot. 
      
      Republican dogma is weighted on the side of Darwinian capitalism and it wants government to collapse while the Love-Thy-Neighbor Democrats are trying to prevent it because government worked in the last Depression.  Whether it can work again is the more salient question to my mind.
      
      
      
      So it's come down to a war of slogans and soundbites—I'm sorry to say—but you can still address a slogan with a thoughtful rebuttal.

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      Shadesbreathposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Beats critical thinking, and leaves more time for video games and catching up on some of that awesome reality TV.

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