LAST WEEK, the Bush motorcade sped by Cindy Sheehan on the way to a Republican National Committee fundraiser, literally leaving her and her fellow protesters in the Crawford dust. Sheehan, whose soldier son was killed in Iraq, was left wanly waving her hand-lettered sign: "Why do you make time for donors and not for me?"
She should have known that this is how it works in America. Only those who fork over the big bucks can count on getting an invitation to President Bush's Texas ranch. That's why Republican donors struggle to raise the $200,000 needed to gain the coveted RNC honorific of "Ranger."
The major donors who met with Bush in Crawford understand that it's all about getting access. Like Sheehan, they want some face time with the president. In fact, they're exactly like Sheehan -- only richer, and without the dead son.
So far, Sheehan -- who must not have noticed that "compassionate conservatism" isn't really the administration's thing anymore -- has tried to appeal to Bush's humanity. Maybe it's time for her to change tactics.
Here's my advice. Sheehan should do just what all those RNC "Rangers" plan on doing: Cash in on her past donations and demand the access she's owed.
After all, Sheehan has been one of the Bush administration's largest contributors, though no one seems to have noticed. The Rangers raised money for Bush, and gave their donations in the form of cash, checks and securities. Sheehan raised her son, Casey, and gave Bush her donation in the form of Casey's life.
If you think Casey's death wasn't the same kind of donation, think again. American society routinely attaches a monetary value to human life. Every time a jury gives out an award in a wrongful-death case, for instance, it has to calculate the monetary value of the lost life. Awards are often based on the dead person's expected lifetime-earnings potential, which can be viewed as "lost income" from which the heirs would otherwise have benefited.
So let's calculate the approximate monetary value of Cindy Sheehan's donation to the Bush administration. Casey was a 24-year-old Army specialist when he died. Given military pay grades, we can probably assume that Casey earned at least $26,000 a year. If he hadn't died in Iraq but instead worked until retiring at 65, his lifetime earnings would have totaled more than $2 million, assuming modest annual salary increases.
