Politics has become so expensive that it takes a lot of money

The words of Will Rogers — “Politics has become so expensive that it takes a lot of money even to be defeated.” — fall like a jest, yet behind the laughter hides a truth as sharp as a blade. With humor, Rogers unmasks the corruption of a system where victory and even defeat are purchased with coin, and where the sacred duty of leadership is shackled to the wealth of those who can afford to play the game.

The meaning of his words is this: in the realm of politics, merit alone is seldom enough. The man of vision, the woman of courage, cannot stand upon the stage of power unless they first gather treasures to feed the machinery of campaigns. And even then, fate may strike them down, leaving them with empty hands and emptied coffers. To be defeated is not only to lose power, but to lose after spending fortunes, after draining one’s gold for the privilege of hearing the people say, “No.”

History gives us vivid examples. Recall William Jennings Bryan, who ran three times for the presidency of the United States. He spoke with fire, he moved multitudes with his words, yet each time he fell short. Though beloved by many, he discovered that speeches and conviction were not enough to overcome the immense resources of his opponents. His defeats stand as living proof of Rogers’s jest: that even the noblest fighter must pay dearly for the chance to lose.

Yet there is also sorrow in this truth. For when money becomes the gatekeeper of power, the poor but wise are silenced, and the wealthy but corrupt are magnified. The spirit of democracy, meant to give voice to all, risks becoming an auction where only the richest bids are heard. Rogers laughed, but his laughter was edged with grief — for he saw that the contest of ideas was often drowned in the clinking of coins.

Let this wisdom be carried forward: the cost of politics is not counted only in dollars, but in the purity of a nation’s soul. When gold outweighs truth, when fortune outweighs merit, the people themselves are defeated, no matter who wins the election. Therefore, let future generations remember Rogers’s jest as a warning — that a democracy must guard itself, lest it become a market where the highest bidder buys the crown, and the voice of the common man is lost in the shadow of wealth.