MAYBE IT IS TIME FOR A CHANGE

As our country tries to recover from one of the worst economic downturns in its history many people are living day to day.

Foreclosures are still near all time highs.

Unemployment numbers are staggering.

Retirement is no longer a possibility for many.

Everyone is just trying to survive.

Well not everyone.

As it appears that our candidates are recession proof.

While the country’s economy crashed and burned last year’s presidential candidates raised more money than ever before.

And it’s not just at the top.

Just this week two fundraising events pulled in over $5 million for the Democratic Party in New York alone.

Similar events are doing the same for the Republicans and all the other parties all across the nation.

We may not have money for health care or for our schools but we continue to fork over the bucks to any Tom, Dick or Mary running for office.

And what do they do with this money?

They fill our mailboxes with campaign literature telling us all the great things they have done if they are in office or promising the great things that they will do if they get into office.

They fill the airways with ads (fact checking optional) bashing their opponents

If truth in advertising applied 90% of them would be in jail.

On the other hand they wouldn’t because they can also use these same campaign funds to hire the best lawyers to keep them out.

One of our esteemed Congressmen has spent over $500,000 of campaign funds to pay for legal fees over the past year.

And I am sure that one of our NYS Senators will be doing the same over the next few months.

Is this what you really want to do with your money?

Campaign reform is a joke and there is nothing we can do about big business and their pay to play policies.

There is also nothing we can do about the lobbyists who continue to buy and sell elected officials like they were penny stocks.

But there is something we can do at least at our level.

The next time you are thinking about writing a check out for a campaign maybe think about giving at least part of it to a local charity.

The next time you are going to spend hundreds of dollars to attend a campaign dinner think about going to an event like the Poor Peoples Dinner or a fundraiser for a local not for profit instead.

The next time you are going to spend hundreds of dollars for a handshake or a photo op with a candidate think about the sick first responders that these same people continue to ignore and write a check to the Fealgood Foundation or some other organization that is actually doing some good.

The bottom line is that if an elected official has done a good job his record should speak for itself.

And if it doesn’t vote for the other guy.

There is no reason why these candidates should be allowed to build up millions in campaign war chests for future elections while some of us can’t even afford to put food on the table.

The process has gotten so bad that we allow candidates to collect matching funds even after they have dropped out of races.

So until if and when we actually get some campaign finance reform in place maybe we can do our part by redistributing the campaign wealth.

They say “you get what you pay for” and if history shows us anything it is that we have gotten very little return on our investments when it comes to campaign contributions.

Maybe it is time for a change.