America goes to the polls today in their midterm elections…

I’m sure many of you will join me in hoping that the Republicans get the absolute political sh*te kicked out of them today at the polls. Has there been a more corrupt presidency than Trump? He oversees what is basically a kleptocracy and does not even try to hide it. He has used the presidency to enrich his personal wealth, the wealth of his family and all his sycophants and hangers-on. The grift is just staggering, Trump made more than 28,000 trades in 17 months. It’s estimated that he raked in over 2 billion alone in 2025.

The money being spent by special interest groups and billionaires is astonishing.

From the Guardian:

The impact of the rise of mega-donors such as the Tesla co-founder, Elon Musk, and an increase in dark money among the very top donors, on this year’s electoral outcome is hard to quantify.

But signs of massive spending are everywhere. Ad industry tracker AdImpact predicts $11.6bn in ad spending this cycle, surpassing the $11.2bn spent in the 2024 presidential election. OpenSecrets, a non-partisan research group tracking money in politics, pegs total spending in the midterms as on track to reach $11.9bn.

The top 40 donors are giving more than ever before: $2.4bn by mid-October, seven times the amount the top 40 in 2014 gave, adjusted for inflation, according to a new analysis from the non-partisan, pro-campaign finance reform institute the Brennan Center for Justice. But the significant difference since then is that those top donors now give more to Republicans, and by a larger differential. In 2014, the top 40 gave to Democrats two to one, but this year the top 40 gave to Republicans three to one over Democrats.

Spending from Super Pacs, which can accept unlimited amounts of money to spend in elections, hit the $2bn mark by the end of September, which is 51% higher than the last midterm cycle, adjusted for inflation, according to the Brennan Center analysis.

And the New York Times counted at least $1bn that has already been spent by dark money groups by the end of August. “Dark money” is composed of organizations such as 501(c)4 non-profits, which are groups that are not required to disclose their donors at all, since they are not supposed to have political activity as their primary purpose. (Those rules are often flouted in spirit, if not in practice.) This dark money spending is increasingly widespread in even lower-profile races across the country, and during primary contests. The Brennan Center’s recent number crunching estimated that dark money groups account for an unprecedented 29% share of the top 40 donors and that $699m is largely untraceable.

The best democracy money can buy, eh?

Brian O'Neill

Managing Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not stuck in front of a screen, I am a parkrun Run Director.