performative fundraising

Jake Bernstein, "The Fundraising Pulpit," NYRB:

Performative fundraising is a prism through which to understand not only the GOP activity during the impeachment hearings but also the Republicans’ Benghazi hearings and the endless posturing around repealing Obamacare. It’s not about achieving policy goals as much as energizing the base and separating them from their cash. Performative fundraising favors simplistic narratives, melodramatic rhetoric, an implacable enemy, and rote phrases to crowd out reasoned debate. Snippets of the act become fundraising pitches. Facebook microtargeting and e-mail lists ensure that pitches reach conservative retirees, especially in sunbelt states like Florida, California, and Texas. 

Where the money winds up is increasingly suspect, thanks to a deliberately hobbled regulatory system. Today, it’s perfectly legal for officeholders to spend contributor money on an opulent lifestyle as long as it’s called fundraising. It’s also legal for unaffiliated campaign consultants to raise contributions in the name of a candidate or cause and then pocket the money for themselves.