Political Science 101

Chapter Fifty-Six

THE SUPREME Court's 2009 "Citizens United" decision was a landmark (and controversial) decision which essentially gave private Political Action Committees the ability to raise and spend a seemingly-endless amount of money on political candidates and campaigns with almost no accountability. In addition, it more-or-less solidified the perspective that political campaigns are more-or-less won by the highest bidder. As long as the candidate is more-or-less unaware of the details, then he/she can simply claim plausible deniability regarding any unethical act by the PAC and remain more-or-less morally blameless and financially limitless.

This is how a previously unknown state-level democratic politician from St. Louis could raise several million dollars to be reelected to the United States House of Representatives.

On the surface, the political candidacy of Ray Doyle seemed like a great stride, not only for the people, but for the political process as-a-whole. Doyle was a life-long Democrat, but was backed by many Republicans in the House of Representative as a show of governmental unity; he was also supported by many conservative groups. The press labeled him the "Candidate of Compromise" and he sold himself as the man who would work to break the ongoing gridlock that plagued the legislative process.

"I'm not afraid to change my mind," Ray said in an interview with CNN one day. "Ever since John Kerry's presidential run, politicians have been afraid to change their stances based on available information." This appearance on CNN was his first national interview, but he looked like he'd been in the public eye for years. "What I mean is," he continued in his interview, "what's the point of having meaningful constructive debates in politics if both sides refuse to sway their position in the face of clear evidence." He raised his eyebrows at the interviewer. "If I hold a position on an issue, but people who are well-versed on this issue present a well-formed and convincing argument as to why my stance is wrong, I am very open to changing my stance. That's not called 'flip-flopping,' it's called being open-minded." The interviewer nodded. "Isn't that how it's supposed to work? America is gridlocked because people hold on to their stances, even when all evidence is to the contrary."

Mitch remembered watching that interview when it aired. And he couldn't help but smile, because those were, literally, Mitch's words. Ray and Mitch discussed this very issue during Ray's candidacy for the State Legislature, though he never had to use it. But in one of their many preparatory sessions for that first election, this was a topic they specifically addressed; and now, on television, here was Ray, saying (almost word-for-word) what Mitch told him was the best response to the topic.

But in reality, this "Candidate of Compromise" thing was a mere construct of his numerous reelection committees. Ray pitched it as an idea early-on, and his committees ran with the idea, inflating it into a complete ideology, not a mere reelection strategy. And it wasn't long before Ray simply felt like a face, a figure, a man to read stump speeches and repeat the rhetoric he was told to memorize by faceless and nameless campaign representatives.

Ray settled on the reality that, though he was viewed as independent, cooperative, and cohesive, the reality was, he was simply along for the ride; and Ray reached a point during his reelection campaign when he was simply okay with this. Ray loved the prestige and the attention that came with being a national politician. And the money was good.

And the women were beautiful.

Ray quickly discovered that some women loved a man in power — a man in the spotlight — and Ray was happy to appease them. Presidents like Bill Clinton and John F. Kennedy mastered this same allure and famously (or, often notoriously) enjoyed its fringe benefits. And Ray Doyle saw no reason not to indulge in this trend as well. After all, his wife was gone, his short-lived fling with his assistant went down in flames, and he figured that as long as he didn't start a scandal of Lewinski or Weiner proportions, then he could more-or-less do as he pleased with whom he pleased. And besides, his campaign had four full-time people dedicated solely to image and damage control.