The proof is in and it is irrefutable. The Russian Government has the greatest advertising and social media interference capability in the world. No one is better than them. Just look at what they did in 2016. They spent less than 13 million dollars on TV ads (see here for proof). And social media spending was even more impressive in terms of turning the tide in Trump's favor–the Russians spent less than $400,000 to get Donald Trump elected.
Executives from Twitter said in a statement that the Russian state media agency Russia Today spent as much as $247,100 in ads targeting U.S. markets in 2016. Twitter also found 201 accounts linked to the same Russian operatives who promoted politically motivated ads on Facebook, as reported by CNN a day before. . . .
Facebook said it had sold about $100,000 worth of ads to a Russian “troll farm” beginning in the summer of 2015.
Let us just call it $1.7 million dollars total. That money helped Trump get 62,984,828 votes. That result was achieved at a cost of 2.6 cents per vote. Give Trump credit for knowing how to make the most efficient use of money.
Mikey Bloomberg? Should have hired the damn Russians.
After focusing past the first four primary states, Bloomberg put more than $570 million into advertising across the country according to ad tracking by Kantar/Campaign Media analysis group. At the time of his departure from the race the morning after Super Tuesday, he had amassed just 31 pledged delegates, meaning in total he had spent about $18 million per delegate earned.
That's right. $18 million per delegate. When you calculate the $700 million he spent and the 59 total delegates he achieved a better result–only $12 million per delegate.
Okay. Back to reality (I hope you recognize my sarcasm in the preceding paragraphs). We now have solid empirical evidence that utterly destroys the ridiculous, absurd claim that that the Russians' meddling in our 2016 Presidential campaign played a role in blocking Ms. Felonious Pant Suit, who extorted money from rubes around the world with the Clinton Foundation, from buying her way into the White House. The Beatles told us that money can't buy you love. It can buy you sex (i.e. prostitution), but not someone willing to sacrifice themselves for your well being.
What about elections? Mike Bloomberg has done his country a tremendous service. He showed us that even if you spend $700 million dollars in advertising, social media and campaign staff, you can barely win America Somoa. Hell, Donald Trump spent less than that in winning the 2016 Presidential election.
Can't wait to see what those clever, cost efficient Russians come up with for the 2020 season. Somehow they have broken the code on how to swing a U.S. election that multi-millionaire campaign consultants cannot crack.
(Snicker) Good one.
Larry
Applying you proposition to politics’ vicious progeny, war, reinforces Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery’s first rule of war. “Don’t go to Moscow”.
If the United States (Bloomberg) outspent the Russians by over 400 to 1 and got nowhere, then the Russian annual defence budget in PPP terms of ~$240 billion would suggest that the United States could spend $96 trillion each year on defence and still get nowhere in an aggressive war against Russia. Perhaps someone could explain this to the Washington Borg.