The Hill News

There is an old joke in campaign circles, “There are three things you need to win an election. The first is money. And I can’t remember what the second two are.”
 
Maybe it is more of an anecdote than a joke. But whatever it is, political campaigns generate lots of criticism and suspicion, and perhaps for good reason.  They are nasty, brutish, short affairs in which at least half the country thinks you are on the wrong side. And as even low-profile congressional races become big business, we are certain to hear more complaints about the abominable amounts of money being spent on elections. The republic, so the argument goes, is once again for sale to the highest bidder.
 
It is true that campaign spending has gone up exponentially over the years. Even accounting for inflation, Abraham Lincoln only spent $2.8 million on his election. In contrast, Obama and McCain collectively raised and spent $1.1 billion in 2008. Over the last ten years, Ameri! cans spent more than $20 billion dollars on congressional, senate and presidential elections.

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