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Sat, 31 Jan 2004 15:45:21 -0500 |
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A recent article in the Toledo Blade began its analysis of political
spending with this historical anecdote:
In the battle to win the hearts of voters, George Washington knew what it
would take to get him elected:
46 gallons of beer.
40 gallons of rum.
35 gallons of wine.
2 gallons of cider.
31/2 pints of brandy.
With the future president's money, a friend bought the drinks for voters at
five taverns in Winchester, Va. Washington himself didn't show up - he was
away in the Army.
But it didn't matter; his liquor did the talking. And Washington, then a
colonel, won.
The 26-year-old was elected to a seat in the House of Burgesses in colonial
Virginia in 1758. Three years earlier, he had come in last in a bid for the
same seat - a race in which he didn't spend a shilling.
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