Although there are a multitude of minor political parties in America, what we so find, is that virtually every elected official, Federal, State, county, or local, is a member in good standing of either the Republican or the Democratic party. This thus signifies that those that donate to either the Republican or the Democratic party are going to, more times than not, be backing a candidate that has at a minimum, a reasonable shot of being elected; though there are those contests, in which, because of demographics or similar, the candidate so running from just one particular party, is actually a shoo-in to win. One might think, based upon the above, that those corporations and individuals that make large political donations would, all things being equal, simply back whatever candidate from whatever party that they personally favor, and thus be done with it. But that, alas, is not how those with deep pockets and are quite savvy, actually prefer to operate, for it has to be noted, that those that only back one horse, while thus reaping the benefits, so of, when their candidate wins, will also correspondingly reap the whirlwind and disadvantages when their candidate loses.
So then, in reality, what happens in the political donation field, with those that are very influential donors, is whether such is out in the open, or far more discreet, is those that make such donations, make it a point to donate to both of the major parties, thus putting them in the good graces of each of the parties; so that, whether the election results or heads or tails, they thus pretty much win, for political actors of all stripes, have an endless need and desire for significant political donations, and seldom turn away anybody or any organization, that ends up putting money into their political bucket. So too, as in many a thing, those that make sizeable donations, typically have at a minimum, some say to match up with the donations so made – and even if a particular elected official insists that this is not so, we do find, that at least subconsciously, it will play upon that politicians’ mind. After all, those political figures that are absolute in their unwillingness to bend or to play ball with certain donors, are perhaps susceptible to a more concerted effort to have them be defeated in a future election, which most elected officials, would obviously prefer to avoid, and hence then, they are typically amendable to a reasonable accommodation with major donors, whether publicized or not.
That said, it might be reasonable to surmise, that those that make sizeable donations to both parties, would be seen as being two-faced or hypocritical in their actions, and thus perceived as being opportunistic, or worse. The reality though, is that money is money, and each party typically believes that they know how to utilize the monies so donated to them, in the more effective manner, and thus do not overly concern themselves with the fact that the other side, also got their fair share, as well. In short, politics lends itself to strange bedfellows, in which, morals, ethics, and integrity, seem to take a permanent backseat to the exercise of power, be it by those that make the donations, or those that receive such.