Individual, small organization and grassroots funding — that’s what President Barack Obama does best. But the 2012 election cycle is bursting into fifth gear, and the president has decided small funding won’t be enough.
In an announcement earlier this week, the Obama campaign said it would work with an independent super PAC to raise additional funds from large corporations because it was not receiving enough high-level funds to compete with GOP candidates.
What’s the problem with this move?
Obama has spent his entire term chastising this practice. This is the man we elected to bring change, and now he’s changing his values to get back into office.
Obama won his last election using campaign techniques that were fair and honest. Now he looks to be whimpering behind Priorities USA Action, the organization he hopes will turn into a cash cow.
The reason for Obama’s change of heart toward the corporate
juggernaut approach is that he can’t afford to have his hard work in small communities be destroyed by hundreds of millions of dollars in negative advertising, according to campaign manager Jim Messina.
But what will the Democratic Party do with all of its new funds? A negative ad campaign against whichever monkey breaks out of the GOP circus tent first and decides he wants to be president.
Four years ago, Obama won our country over by running an honest campaign that spoke to his morals and those of his voters. He won the 2008 election against a more difficult opponent than he will face in November. Nothing needs to change.
More American voters are becoming less influenced by negative ads or slanderous attacks on politicians. Most of us are educated. We know the difference between lies and truth.
Obama said super PACs are “a threat to our democracy,” and he is right. It is no longer Obama versus the GOP, but Corporation A versus Corporation B.
Obama has already raised $220 million before the creation of the super PAC, and through the money raised has kept his supporters believing in his message. Now he is saying their attempt to fund him was “nice” and “cute” but he needs real money to win the office back.
What he needs are real voters, which he is getting closer and closer to losing with moves like this.