I found this list of things that Meg Whitman could have bought with the $163 million that she spent on her failing campaign for Governor, over at So. California Public Radio’s website. Here is the list:
- Contribute about $300,000 to every member of the US Congress
- Purchase the Hearst Castle
- Buy about 800,000 kilos of Mexican marijuana
- Fully fund the Atlanta-based Charter School Growth Fund, which hopes to establish spots for 335,000 children in charter schools over the next decade
- Fund the entire bonus pool paid to AIG executives in 2009
- Give $11.64 to each of the 13 million-plus California voters who participated in the 2008 general election, or just buy a Happy Meal for every Californian
- Provide the total investment Toshiba is putting up for a plant in Japan that will produce the next generation of flash memory modules
- Buy a 190-foot x 125-foot “floating island” yacht unveiled earlier this year at the Abu Dhabi Yacht Show. The ship features a 75 foot swimming pool, cinema, music and dining rooms and a 90 foot-long “beach”
- Finance the entire production of the film, “Inception”, which, by the way, went on to earn more than $800 million
- Match a grant recently awarded by the federal government to expand high-speed rail service in New England
- Reimburse Wells Fargo for the fine it paid to settle a criminal case against its Wachovia unit, which was charged with allowing international cocaine cartels to launder money through its bank
- Provide full scholarships for almost 40,000 students to attend Cal State Universities for one year
- Purchase 10 million Personalized Black Titanium/Stainless Steel Name Rings (each one engraved “Meg”) on Ebay
Art,
These are clear statistics that demonstrate what can be purchased for personal use and what services that could be done for the public. No you can not purchase the California Governorship.
Freedon in American means that a person can spend their money on what they want.
Meg wants to be governor. Its her money and the office is for sale.
and with all the money the public employee unions spent to try and defeat her could have done the same . IT WORKS BOTH WAYS ZORRO
Interesting. However, the California Teacher’s Union spent $250,000,000 (yes, that many zeros) on campaigns in the last reporting period BEFORE this campaign season. What could that money, taken directly from teachers’ salaries without needing permission, have done to help education in our schools? To help with scholarships? To fund all of the wonderful programs detailed above?
Are you really saying that it is worse for someone TO SPEND THEIR OWN EARNED after tax dollars, than the misappropriation of dollars earmarked for education? Under the theory that is evidently espoused above, only those in the pocket of a public union should be able to run for government office because we are going to skewer those that believe strongly enough to fund a part of their own campaign? It is scary when I see crap like the above in writing.
The unions are not spending public money. They are spending their dues. That is their money.
Scream all you want, but Meg is finished.
and what if my dues dont want to go to progressive = aka liberal candidates .