What Makes a PAC Tick?

We hear about PACs (political action committees) all the time in the news, see the letters pasted at the bottom of political ads, but what exactly makes up a PAC?  Generally speaking it’s really quite simple: a PAC is a committee of people who get together and donate over $1000 to a political campaign or candidate within the course of one year.  Federal law differentiates between connected and unconnected PACs, those that are sponsored by unions, corporations, and the like being called “connected.”  Unconnected PACs are usually more driven by ideology.  Either way, PACs are formed by people who want something from the candidate in question.

This becomes ridiculously obvious when asking a PAC for money.  PACs are looking to back winners so that means the lion’s share of the funding is going to go to incumbents.  The goal is to get the candidate indebted to the PAC so, once the election is over, it becomes easier for those funding the PAC to get into the door and say, “Hey, remember all that money?  Well, if you like this office, and want more, we need [insert demand here].”

As we can see, PACs perpetuate the broken system.  So why did Clean Sweep Beacon Hill organize as a PAC?  Because it’s the simplest way to do business under the current laws.  What makes it difficult for us is that there is no large union, corporation, or donor base behind us as most PACs have at start-up.

Here’s where we are different: if you are a normal citizen who decides to run for state representative, chances are there are no PACs or other organizations that will give you the time of day.  We will.  It’s written into our bylaws.  Not only that, we want to.  Sending the same tired faces to the same offices, election after election, is how we wound up with Massachusetts crumbling around our ears while the solons endlessly debate how many slots should be licensed and how not to reduce taxes like they promised.

Why do we think that repeating the same motions that got us into this mess will fix it?  We keep voting the same people from the same parties into power and what has it gotten us?  In a word, screwed.  And that’s going to continue until we try something different, and that something starts right now as we support new candidates for state office.

Let us know if you’re fed up.

http://www.cleansweepbeaconhill.org/index.html

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