# Bill Gates for President - One Million Dollars to Every Person in America **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [August 4, 2005, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498 "2005-08-04T00:15:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/21 "2005-08-04T14:34:55Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#): > > The OP’s suggestion isn’t vote-buying, though. Whether you get a million dollars has nothing to do with how or whether you vote. He’s promising to give everyone money, not just those who vote for him. I think it would be perfectly legal, in the hypothetical situation that someone could actually do it. It didn’t matter in Michael Moore’s case. Wasn’t there talk of bringing him up on charges in Michigan because he offered Ramen Noodles and clean underwear to college students who registered to vote? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/22 "2005-08-04T14:38:29Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > It didn’t matter in Michael Moore’s case. Wasn’t there talk of bringing him up on charges in Michigan because he offered Ramen Noodles and clean underwear to college students who registered to vote? There was talk, but it was confined to the right-wing blogospere, where **registering** to vote is often confused with **voting**. ---
**Author:** ![Balle\_M](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@Balle\_M](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balle_M)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/23 "2005-08-04T15:20:30Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > It would be the liberal/socialist dream come true…leveling the playing field and all that. Of course, it would be a complete disaster, but what the hell. 😛 -XT Nah…That’s _his_ money. It’s only a liberal/socialist dream come true if you’re spending \*someone elses \* money. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/24 "2005-08-04T15:47:20Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Even if it were legal and possible, wouldn’t the resulting inflation pretty much effectively wipe out the value of the million bucks? It most likely would. Just like tax deductions on home mortgages raise housing prices. You can’t get around simply laws of supply and demand. > [@furt](#): > > Or, more efficiently, he could just buy a dozen senators. We’re having a special today. Buy 12 Senators and we throw in the entire Pennsylvanian delegation to the House for free!! ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/25 "2005-08-04T17:05:17Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > Yeah, it would be wiser to give just the richest two percent of the population 500 billion dollars to divide. Much better for the economy. I hope this was said tongue in cheek and you weren’t serious. Assuming you were serious and not whooshing me, what effect to you predict would happen if someone gave a million dollars to everyone in the US? How about the effect of taking 500 billion from the richest American’s (no one ‘gave’ them the money) and simply redistributing it to the other 98%? -XT ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/26 "2005-08-04T17:24:32Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > There was talk, but it was confined to the right-wing blogospere, where **registering** to vote is often confused with **voting**. The statute in question, quoted earlier in this thread, clearly covers payment for **registering** or voting. The talk was not confined to the right-wing blogosphere. I heard Moore himself mention it on NPR, and there was law-enforcement interest, IIRC. What he was doing was clearly a violation of the law. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/27 "2005-08-04T20:53:14Z")
> [@Tim Staab](#): > > What he was doing was clearly a violation of the law. So why wasn’t he charged, tried and punished? Hmmm? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/28 "2005-08-04T20:59:38Z")
> [@xtisme](#): > > I hope this was said tongue in cheek and you weren’t serious. For the sarcasm impaired: :rolleyes: > [@](#): > > Assuming you were serious and not whooshing me, what effect to you predict would happen if someone gave a million dollars to everyone in the US? Hyperinflation, no doubt. My point was, tax cuts that benefit the wealthy at the expense of ballooning the deficit have the same effect, but to a proportional degree. > [@](#): > > How about the effect of taking 500 billion from the richest American’s (no one ‘gave’ them the money) and simply redistributing it to the other 98%? How about scrapping the tax cuts and using the 500 billion to pay down the deficit, instead of waging a war on plastic and rewarding Bush’s cronies? Where is all that “accountability” conservatives are famous for? ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2005, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/29 "2005-08-04T23:03:24Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > Where is all that “accountability” conservatives are famous for? See above, re: M. Moore. In the conservative of the species, the use of the terms “accountable” and “personal responsibility” are to be directed at others, preferably the opposition or the downtrodden. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/30 "2005-08-05T01:01:29Z")
> [@furt](#): > > Nah, he could do better than that. All he has to do is pay off 51% of the voters, not every man, woman and child. 70 million voters oughta be enough, and he could pony up $657 for each of them. In fact, he could do better than that. All he has to do is pay off 51% of the voters in enough states to win 51% of the electoral votes. I did the math on this once, and I think it’s possible to get elected in a two-party race with very close to 25% of the actual votes. With voter turnouts of 60%, that’s around 15% of the eligible voters in the country. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [August 5, 2005, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498/31 "2005-08-05T04:18:41Z")
> [@Fear Itself](#): > > Hyperinflation, no doubt. My point was, tax cuts that benefit the wealthy at the expense of ballooning the deficit have the same effect, but to a proportional degree. Um…riiigggghhhtttt. I can see how the two relate. :dubious: > [@Fear Itself](#): > > How about scrapping the tax cuts and using the 500 billion to pay down the deficit, instead of waging a war on plastic and rewarding Bush’s cronies? Where is all that “accountability” conservatives are famous for? Well, I’m unsure what this has to do with the topic at hand actually. Is this just a cheap shot at conservatives to make you feel good or do you want to explain what in hell it has to do with the OP? -XT [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bill-gates-for-president-one-million-dollars-to-every-person-in-america/315498.md?page=1)