ABSTRACT
Politicians are environmental players who carry around some big secrets. These secrets are never revealed to the world outside politics, and most politicians will not confess these secrets, even to each other. Many politicians will not admit to themselves that they have these secrets, even when it is quiet and when they are totally alone late at night. Elected officials use the one-third, one-third, one-third rule in making major political decisions. To survive, elected officials rely heavily on their staffs; they become generalists, that is, people who are interested in learning about all sorts of things. Money can be used to help elected officials, and it can be used to hurt elected officials. Campaign contributions can help elected officials stay in office, provided those contributions are given to them. Campaign contributions can also help defeat elected officials, if those campaign contributions are given to their opponents.
