Money, that is the basis, the rationale, and the power of Jeb Bush and his potential. The assumption is universal and it applies to Hillary as much as it applies to Jeb: money is the mother's milk of politics and with a presidential campaign now costing just north of $1 billion it is the money not issues, not charisma, not integrity which counts most in the race for nomination and for election.
Who is to say the universal assumption is wrong? One has only to watch Watters' World to understand the ignorance of the man on the street who goes into the polling booth. Elections are won and lost on television because that is where these people get their information but television costs money.
Yes, it is true that a bad candidate probably cannot compensate with television ads for weakness of appeal but, all things being equal (which they never are) money trumps. One of the reasons that things are never equal is because Republicans are running not just against their opponent but against the media and now Republicans must run against demographic trends. It is not insignificant that immediately below this article appears an article telling us that the majority of newborns are children of color.
The problem for establishment Republicans is they have attempted to win elections with money from the top down. That is no longer a winning formula because the media and demographics are becoming too formidable. Conservatives, as opposed to Republicans, must approach elections from the bottom up and try to compensate for the absence of money, the opposition media, and the swelling demographic tsunami with real emotive appeal on issues. If the emotions of the electorate can be engaged, the money will follow.
God knows Obama has given any red-blooded conservatives all the issues he needs to wage a bottom-up campaign if someone like Ted Cruz (or Scott Walker) with forensic skills makes the case. We here on FreeRepublic must understand that we are very knowledgeable about issues and about politics but we are in a bubble and what makes sense to us is not even heard by the great unwashed. A conservative hero who would wage a bottom-up campaign that finds traction must really be media savvy-and lucky. The odds are long but the stakes are huge.
