We Want Your Vote, We Need Your Money

          Politicians are constantly calling supporters to try to get donations from them. While it sometimes seems as if they are doing this for their own personal profit or benefit they are actually required to raise funds for their political parties. John Oliver on his show Last Week Tonight discusses the topic of Congressional Fundraising. Oliver tells that the fundraisers themselves have become part of the economy of Washington DC. The restaurants that host the functions rely on the fundraisers as a main part of their income. While it is excellent for the politicians to be supporting the local businesses and helping the economy. Politicians are suggested to spend 4 hours a day making phone calls asking for donations. They do this in call centers that are set up with small cubicles and bad conditions. Oliver spoke with Senator Steve Israel who described the process as "a form of torture." These awful working conditions are similar to that of the early 1900s when workers we required to work long hours for low pay while being closely supervised by their employers. The politicians are so hard on the workers in the call centers because their political parties require them to pay fees that can total up 800,000. This money is often used to help the campaigns of less popular candidates in their party. While it is fair for the successful politicians to help the smaller ones they are required to raise ridiculous amounts of money. If a politician cannot win an office on their own they probably are not good enough to hold the office in the first place. The political party has created an almost socialist environment to support their democratic and republican ideals. The process seems to contradict itself and is ultimately unfair and ineffective.