The problem with campaign contributions, from the Democratic standpoint, is that they're regarded as voluntary by Democrats. Consider: one way or another, Bush will find a way to get his hands on about half a billion dollars to finance his reinstallment campaign. Never mind about whether that money comes from Halliburton or Eric Rudolph; just assume it's there. Further figure that the perks of the presidency--Air Force One, free security, the Rose Garden, and so forth--plus not having to campaign in the primaries will give him the equivalent of a $750 million bankroll against whoever the Democrats nominate. Okay, that's scary.
But it's actually not very much money when you think about it. If everyone who voted for Gore gave $15, that would even things up right there. Of course, it's not quite that simple: in the plus column, there are a few soft-money corporate cows that Democrats can still milk; in the minus column, not everyone will give $15, or would even want to. But all in all an average contribution per vote of $15 is a reasonable target, especially if you put it this way: would you give $15 now for a Gore victory in 2000? I bet that 40 million of those 50 million Gore voters would open their wallets before you could finish the sentence.
But, of course, the only way this works is as a legitimate grass-roots effort. No central plan from the DNC, no fancy thermometer graphics on websites--just pure harassment. And that I know how to do. So my mission from this point on is to shake down every last Democrat, liberal, Green, progressive, and left-winger I know for that $15, unless I think they can afford more. I'll also shake down the two conservatives I know. What say you, blogosphere? Is it just that simple? It wouldn't have worked with Mondale/Reagan, and it wasn't necessary in Clinton/Dole, but aren't we all pretty much convinced there's something different against Bush/Democrat X?
P.S. Primary contributions, most of which are used to serve a purpose other than winning the general election, don't count.
