Who’S Buying The Republican And Democratic Parties?

In modern politics, “power andinfluence” usually comes down to which side attracts the most money.   Who’s Buying The Republican and Democratic Parties?By Cliff Montgomery – Jan. 26th, 2008Everyone knows that 2008 is an election year. While the popular imagination is fixed on this year’s presidential race, few have stopped to consider the influence that the two major political parties still wield on the election of a president and other public officials.The ugly truth is that the Democratic and Republican Parties are the only two American political organizations which have a legitimate shot at financing most national or state-wide campaigns. Therefore the party machinery of each has the greatest influence in deciding which candidates will be the immediate front-runners and which issues will be discussed during an election cycle.If you wish to know which party has the best shot at winning in November, you must consider which of the two political machines currently enjoys the most power and influence.  And in modern politics, “power and influence” usually comes down to which side attracts the most money.  The Democratic and Republican Parties take in hundreds of millions from their supporters during each election cycle.Before November 2002, unlimited “soft money” donations also were freely  accepted from wealthy individuals, corporations and labor unions. The two parties now may only accept “hard money”–donations given by Political Action Committees (PACs) and individuals which are limited by federal contribution limits.So where does all the money come from now? today is printing the most recent money profile for each major party, and revealing each party’s biggest industrial supporters.The total party receipts revealed below are based on Federal Election Commission reports released on Tuesday, January 22nd, 2008:2007 – 2008 Totals2008 CYCLE – TOTAL RECEIPTSDemocratic Party – $228,698,962Republican Party – $218,743,635Main Party CommitteesDemocratic National Cmte – $50,483,604Republican National Cmte – $76,918,299House Party CommitteesDemocratic Congressional Campaign Cmte – $60,757,995National Republican Congressional Cmte – $43,413,770Senate Party CommitteesDemocratic Senatorial Campaign Cmte – $49,290,719National Republican Senatorial Cmte – $28,717,952″All the numbers [below revealing the top 10 industrial supporters for each party] are for the 2008 election cycle, and [are] based on Federal Election Commission data released on Monday, January 07, 2008,” according to the Center for Responsive Politics.Democratic Party Supporters- Top 10 IndustriesCandidate Committees – $14,613,497Lawyers/Law Firms – $12,192,192Securities & Investment – $11,912,082Retired – $10,643,648Real Estate – $6,880,941Misc Finance – $3,272,592TV/Movies/Music – $2,890,236Business Services – $2,833,589Health Professionals – $2,780,685Non-Profit Institutions – $2,122,733Republican Party Supporters – Top 10 IndustriesRetired – $10,489,700Securities & Investment – $5,966,149Real Estate – $5,926,842Candidate Committees – $5,604,180Misc Business – $2,652,096Health Professionals – $2,636,581Lawyers/Law Firms – $2,412,261Misc Finance – $2,189,777Oil & Gas – $1,947,181Business Services – $1,839,318Like what you’re reading so far? Then why not order a full year (52 issues) of thee-newsletter for only $15? A major article covering an story not being told in the Corporate Press will be delivered to your email every Monday morning for a full year, for less than 30 cents an issue. Order Now!