Where do your donations to political campaigns go? Mostly to advertising but the Bloomington Pantagraph has this fun list of other places it goes.
According to state campaign records, Illinois politicians have spent more than $93,000 of their campaign cash on pizza in recent years.
They've also spent more than $201,000 on candy, $24,606 on cake and pancakes, and nearly $20,000 on ice cream.
[snip]
…records show that state lawmakers, judges and others also bought $1,211 worth of lollipops and more than $145,000 worth of beer and wine.
"If they are ripping off anybody, they are ripping off their donors," said Morrison.
In the most recent filing period, state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka reported paying $120 to the city of Springfield to settle up a number of late parking tickets.[snip]
Records dating to the 1990s show that nearly $11 million has been spent on golf-related fund-raising activities.
Check out the whole article for even more examples.
None of this is illegal, of course. Still, I hate to think my $25.00 donation might go for lollipops. I guess you have to keep in mind that “bribing” people with food and golf is at least as effective as television ads.
1 comment:
Dude, candidates don't usually "bribe" people with pizza. They typically buy food and drinks for volunteers during campaign season or for fundraisers. And $93K on pizza since January of 1999 for all candidates everywhere in the state is really a pittance.
Post a Comment