A Donation Well Done (Not Well Spent)

One thing I've learned in the past year is the value of action over money. When I volunteered and worked for causes I saw the results greatly improved. I also saw money pour into campaign efforts in all directions and noticed the money, in the billions, get wasted across this country. From Democratic websites, Republican emails, and nominee websites there is a common element in how they want people to be a part of their efforts: money. The links to contribute along the entire line link to either registering to give money, or news letters that only ask for money contributions.

This is where I alter the course. I vow at this very moment to make every campaign action oriented instead of money driven. I will not call on people to give their hard earned money. Instead, talk to their neighbors and friends and family about the issues facing our state and who they believe more closely represents them on those issues. It will rest on me to prove to people that I am the person who closely represents them. The forms to contribute will request time, not money.

I want to lead people, not checkbooks and credit card accounts. I will also have a program where volunteers will be invited to speak on my behalf at events I cannot attend. From large rallys to local political party committee meetings, I will entrust my message to those who follow me. Not only will I trust those who share the same message, I will give them actual leadership. They will be given something tangible for a contribution that they can hold onto. The money people give will be accepted, but not emphasized.

The main reason for this shift is because a person usually doesn't know where their money goes when they donate it to a political party. Usually it goes to advertisements and organizing exposure at rallies. Sometimes it goes to expensive, frivolous spending for a campaign that many people only find out about if they are a rival (suits, hairstylists, meetings with special interest groups on the tab of the campaign). I will not have any of that waste. The campaign's I am the candidate for will have me buying my own clothes, and buying nobody else's, combing my own hair, and meeting with people at rallies and not executives at private luncheons in order to get endorsements). The stance I have against group endorsements is because I prefer the endorsement of the American people and not a special interest group or PAC.