Rich Candidates Risk Clinton Gaffe With Senate in Play

[Purveyor]

As Hillary Clinton learned the hard way, politics and money aren’t always a good mix.

In Kentucky, Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes is attacking her Republican opponent, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, as being someone who “quadrupled his net worth on the backs of hardworking Kentuckians that can’t afford it.”

Former Dollar General Corp. chief executive officer David Perdue, who is funding much of his own U.S. Senate campaign in Georgia, was accused in the Republican primary of failing to understand “this is an election, not an auction.”

Republicans McConnell and Perdue are among the wealthiest U.S. Senate candidates in this year’s 12 most competitive contests, data compiled by Bloomberg shows, and the issue could help sway which party gains control of the chamber in November.

“It’s always challenging for politicians to talk about their wealth,” said Nick Carnes, a professor at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, who studies the occupations and wealth of elected officials. “The vast majority of politicians are significantly better off than the people they’re trying to represent.”

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-07-08/rich-candidates-risk-clinton-gaffe-with-senate-in-play.html

[alsame]

1. More problems

of the 1%

It would be nice if we actually had representative government and most candidates didn't have to worry about their embarrassing wealth.

[Louisiana1976]

2. Yes. Campaigns should be publically funded.