Cruz is spending a whopping six times more than Trump on Super Tuesday ads. And we all know what their respective numbers are.
If this isn’t proof that “big money in politics” is a non-issue, then I don’t know what is. We are getting caught up in our own consumerist mentality that becomes a dark labyrinth where the light of reason doesn’t penetrate. Consumers need to believe that everything is for sale, and they will keep trying to buy things that nobody is trying to sell.
I’m going to be in Florida starting next week so it’ll be interesting to watch the Florida primary up close. Election Day is the 15th of March. See if I can myself a Donald Trump button. 🙂
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It will be very interesting to see if Rubio loses his home state, too.
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I think you have a good point about money here. However, part of the issue is president may be one of the few where money is becoming a little less important (it still matters, and trump has gotten insane amounts of “free press” and sociall media coverage which has made money less important this time). However down ballot , senate, house, governor, mayor and other state reps you will never get the media to cover as widely as a presidential race so I think money is more important in those races.
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Different perspective: Advertising is nowhere near as effective as ad agencies want their clients to believe. A famous quote about advertising is that 80% of ad budgets is wasted — the advertisers just don’t know which 80%. Grass roots campaigns can outperform a media blitz. That said, a grass roots effort also takes money, and the candidate with no funds is DOA. So money serves to filter who can run for office. However, just because a candidate has a lot of money doesn’t mean he spends it well.
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I agree 100% about advertising! Been saying this for years and nobody believes me.
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IIRC the great bulk of advertising is just brand and/or image maintenance (that is to remind people the brand still exists while reinforcing its image). In that sense it does its job which is not necessarily to dramatically increase sales.
A successful ad campaign that creates interest and/or improves sales is always welcome of course but it’s not really what anyone in the business expects to happen (ad agencies or their clients).
Also, the most creative ads that win awards are mostly created…. to win awards (to help generate future business) and a high percentage of them are only minimally used in order to qualify for awards.
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Agree with vic 100%. Money is a necessary but not a sufficient condition to win. Having money doesn’t guarantee a win (obligatory lol at Scott walker and jeb) but not having money guarantees a loss.
Plus, money is a better indicator of policy outcomes than election outcomes.
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A conservative literary critic and college professor
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