Not likely. Look instead at the ratio of federal spending versus spending by presidential candidates . . . → Read More: Federal Spending vs. Candidate Spending]]> Seems like every handful of years, somebody starts yammering about how much money candidates spend to get elected. About how that spending is going up and up and up. And they claim that that’s a sure sign of corruption.

Not likely. Look instead at the ratio of federal spending versus spending by presidential candidates over several decades:

See how the ratio varies between 1 and 2.5? That’s because candidates spend in proportion to the power they’ll have. If you want them to spend less, expect them to do less and spend less of your own money.