Let’s see. You have donors pay for your travel. You stay in nice accommodations and eat at good restaurants. Why the hell not?
Exactly. It’s not about winning the nomination for a lot of these also-rans because they know they can’t. It’s about getting face time in front of the American people. You’re selling yourself. A good performance in debates could translate later to a network gig as a consultant or a talk show. It could also lead to a well paid speaking tour as a motivational speaker, maybe a book deal, or landing a big job with a major corporation in some capacity. Most of these candidates outside of Bush, Cruz, Paul, Rubio, and Walker know they have no prayer of the nomination, but they’re thinking ahead to the abundant economic opportunities that come with being a former presidential candidate.