If you want to see the future, look at the elections in the districts currently represented by the Congressional Black Caucus. Unchallenged incumbents and handpicked successors is the future. Incompetence and criminal behavior will not be enough to unseat more than very few incumbents.

When the Democratic primary is the ony relevant elections, then GOTV and feet on the ground will become more important than television advertising. In a one party state, politics will become a niche past time of activist and everyone else will left on the outside.

”These latest revelations make it clear why Edwards was able to announce that he could accept public funds while still spending all he needed to spend in Iowa,” Obama Campaign Manager David Plouffe writes. “His campaign simply exploited the biggest loophole in the campaign finance system in order to get public matching funds while arranging through allies to benefit from a 527. That’s how they avoided the spending limits that are a condition of the public matching funds.”

On Clinton, Plouffe denounces an anti-Obama AFSCME mailer. Notably, a pro-Edwards 527, funded largely by local SEIUs, is up with positive ads in Iowa for Edwards. AFSCME and the American Federation of Teachers have been out with mailers for Clinton. Clinton has not shied away from interest groups’ money, even defending them as real people at this summer’s YearlyKos convention. Edwards has campaigned hard on a platform against Washington interest group money, and has had to balance denouncing the 527 and embracing the support of the SEIU.

Since money, like water, finds all cracks, the process of perfecting representative government is a constant process that tries to minimize the opportunities for special interests to buy favorable legislation.

Personally I hope for the Supreme Court to reverse its position that Money = Free Speech. In an increasingly global economy, transnational corporations are inclined to spend what is necessary to buy favors from financially desperate candidates.