OBJECTION: "I don't believe in giving money to political candidates."
RESPONSE: I'm sure you have insurance on your car, home, and business office. Bad legislation passed by Congress, the state legislature, or city council could be more catastrophic financially than the loss of your car, home, or business by fire, theft, or storm. RPAC helps elect officials at the national, state, and local levels who support the free enterprise system and private property rights. That's the best insurance against legislation that can hurt our livelihood as REALTORS!
OBJECTION: "I already contribute to political candidates on my own."
RESPONSE: You should contribute directly to the candidates of your choice, but you should also contribute through RPAC. An RPAC contribution to a candidate represents our entire profession and our views on legislation that directly affects our industry. Also, under the law RPAC may contribute much larger amounts to a federal candidate than can an individual; the more sizeable RPAC contribution can often make the difference between victory and defeat for a candidate who is supportive of the real estate industry.
OBJECTION: "I've heard about political action committees - they're just in the business of buying votes."
RESPONSE: RPAC does not "buy" the votes of politicians. Make no mistake, most candidates and officeholders are honorable persons whose votes are not for sale. RPAC helps elect candidates who share our philosophy, or who will at least listen to the REALTOR viewpoint. RPAC-supported candidates who are elected will not always support us; of course. But they will usually be more favorable to our point of view than the candidate who ran against them or the incumbent they replaced.
OBJECTION: "I'm a (Democrat/Republican), and I noticed RPAC has contributed to candidates of the other party."
RESPONSE: There are Association members at all levels who are active in one or the other political party. That makes our presence felt in both parties. But RPAC itself is nonpartisan in its selection of candidates to support; mere party label is not considered. The record, program, and quality of each candidate, plus the recommendations of Local Boards and State Associations, determine who gets RPAC support.
OBJECTION: "I don't like the so-and-so RPAC gave a contribution to."
RESPONSE: Even the national and state RPAC trustees who make those decisions do not always agree 100 percent about which candidates to support. However, the trustees have a good deal of information from a variety of sources to help them in making their decisions. A member may disagree occasionally about one or two candidates RPAC supports, but the decisions of the trustees usually represent the best long-term interests of the Association and its members.
OBJECTION: "I don't like the Association's position on this or that issue."
RESPONSE: You may not agree with a particular position taken by the Association on a specific issue, but I'm sure you support the basic REALTOR philosophy. The question is "do you want to help elect candidates who hold the same philosophy?" If your answer is "yes," then RPAC is the best way to do it.
OBJECTION: "If RPAC is already so successful, why should I contribute now?"
RESPONSE: Protecting private property rights and our ability to do business is an ongoing battle. Those hostile to the real estate industry are always working to undermine the right to hold and use private property. So while RPAC has been successful in advancing the REALTOR position, we must remain strong and ready to assist candidates at every level who support our point of view. On many occasions, some lawmakers have incurred political risk to support REALTOR-backed legislation. We can't abandon them when they need help in their campaigns. The best way to support them is through RPAC.
OBJECTION: "But I'm only in the real estate business part-time."
RESPONSE: If you benefit at all from your real estate activities, you have something to lose if the wrong candidates are elected or the wrong laws passed. We all have an obligation to help protect the industry from which we earn even part of our livelihood. RPAC is one of the best ways to support our industry.
OBJECTION: "Because of the economy I really can't afford to contribute."
RESPONSE: The economy is a product of politics, and we really can't afford not to get involved. Every penny of your RPAC contribution is used to help elect public officials who understand our economic situation and will be responsive to the economic problems of our industry. When you think about it, making a contribution to RPAC is a real bargain.
OBJECTION: "RPAC supports federal candidates; I'm more interested in state and local candidates."
RESPONSE: Though at least
30 percent of your RPAC
contribution does go to support federal candidates, up to
70 percent will remain right
here for use in supporting state and local candidates. By making one contribution to RPAC,
you can help support good candidates at the federal, and at the state and local
levels.