The Real Bad Guys in Politics
If you haven’t had a chance to read this article in POLITICO, take ten minutes and read it. It’s eye opening about a part of politics that we don’t like to talk about, but those of us who have been labeled as “professionals” know only too well. When you lift up a rock in Washington, these are the guys scurrying out of the light underneath it.
There are a lot of different parts of the “political class” in Washington and in other, smaller spheres of influence around the country. There are the elected officials. Then you have the revolving door career politicos, who bounce from government appointments to the private sector and back, waiting for the next administration that shares their political party alignment. There are the “good” consultants and fundraisers – the guys who help people get elected and who bust their butts and hold their candidates accountable for doing what they need to do to win. You’ve got lobbyists and trade association executives, lawyers and the like, all of whom function in their own spheres and tend to cross pollinate with the other folks I listed. These folks aren’t the bad guys – at least, not all of them. They’re the folks who have taken the time to learn the issues and work the process, and most of them got into the business to affect positive change first, not just get rich (and many never will).
Then you’ve got the grifters. These are the folks that Paul Jossey is talking about – the ones who make obscene amounts of money by ripping off people. They’re the “bad” political consultants and fundraisers who latch on to candidates and proceed to suck them dry. The kinds, for example, who charge a percentage of what they raise and a monthly fee. These are the ones who expect to get paid first, before a dime goes out the door for voter contact. They’re the kind who put together Super PACs, raise money in the name of candidates they’ve never talked to, and pocket the proceeds, maybe making a token donation to the campaign of the candidate whose name they used without permission or coordination. These are the people that your average voter thinks they’re complaining about when they talk about “beltway insiders” and “the establishment.” They’re not. Real beltway insiders and the actual establishment hate these guys too.
It’s all about the Benjamins for these people. And, unfortunately, they give everybody who is involved in politics as a vocation a bad name. They don’t care about winning or about governing. All they want is your money.
These guys are the ones perpetuating the attacks on Republicans by Republicans. They aren’t the #Nevertrump crowd though – these grifters were the first ones to get their “Make America Great Again” hats, because they saw yet another movement they could suck dry and an amateur candidate who wouldn’t know the difference between good help and them. They were the first ones to get their Gadsden Flag gear, and start talking about how the Tea Party needed to be organized to win, and they would help do it. Some of them are still hanging around those Tea Party groups, pretending like they’re still relevant too. You may even have seen some of them in the comments here and on the blogs.
They aren’t interested in winning or governing. Winning is actually bad for them, because it’s easier to perpetuate the myth of the establishment keeping them down, and they get to blame everybody else when things are not as rosy as the promises – because that’s almost inevitable. Good governance is even worse, because good governance keeps good candidates in office and solves problems; these guys rake in the dough when chaos rules. They’re also very good at weaponizing the anger of people sick of the status quo, and they tend to point those people at their competition.
People who are content don’t donate money to angry groups promising “action.” That’s why these guys never want to actually help anybody win a campaign or govern responsibly when they do win. Governing responsibly does not generate them money. In fact, it costs them money, as the rage that feeds their cash machine ebbs and your dollars stop flowing. That’s why they are so quick to deflect any discussions about their featherbedding by claiming this is just “the establishment” attacking them.
These people are not the anti-establishment. They’re not even the “political class” in Washington – the actual political class, such as it is, operates at a much higher level than this. The political class wants to govern. These people just want your money. They’re the same kind of grifters and cads that have been stealing money from little old ladies and the lonely since time immemorial. They’re the slimy guy you don’t want your widowed grandmother to run into at the grocery store. They make their living conning money out of those who are angry with the system and desperately want to see it changed. They are the exact opposite of anybody you should be giving your money to.
Jossey suggests that you can avoid these guys by giving local, but that’s wrong. These folks aren’t just national. They’re the local grifters, too. The ones who host events and then “pass the hat” asking for a couple bucks ostensibly to off-set the cost of the event, but really just designed to make sure they get their dinner paid for. They’re the guys organizing “meetings” and “candidate forums” and then trying to sell tickets. They’re the guys who show up at the free events and hover near the food table, while trying to sell knock off campaign swag and bumper stickers about how guns don’t kill people, Hillary Clinton does.
If you want to make a difference in politics at the grassroots level, don’t ever give money to any of these groups. Don’t join your local Tea Party group. Don’t waste money on a “membership” with one of the think tanks, or donate to any of the national Super PACs that are constantly advertising to you using lists they grabbed from an intern who hopped from campaign to campaign a few years ago. Definitely stay away from anything that’s labeled “constitution,” “conservative,” “freedom,” “patriots” or something similar. Those groups are almost always designed to rip you off. They use those words because they appeal to your grassroots Republican voter who is tired of Washington. Give to established organizations that you know – groups like the NRA and the Federalist Society – groups who exist to advocate on issues, not elect candidates. Join your local unit committee. If you care about certain candidates winning, write a check directly to their campaigns. Or, better yet, take the time to get out and volunteer. That’s what wins campaigns – conversations between neighbors, not glossy advertisers or fifteen page fundraising solicitations.
Recognize that our elected officials, the good consultants and fundraisers, and the rest of the political class aren’t the bad guys. They’re the ones who actually want to govern, not just get rich off your anger with the status quo. Reward them with your time, your money and your votes. Keep your wallet closed to the bad guys, and learn to be able to tell the difference between somebody who is truly in the trenches with you, and somebody who just thinks you’re an easy mark.
And, of course, keep reading Bearing Drift.
