I know that when you think of Julie and me, you think politics is all glamour, all the time. But there’s a lot of drudgery that goes on behind the scenes.

In order to buy all of that TV time, statewide and national candidates have to raise millions of dollars. Because of contribution limits, it’s a laborious process to raise that much money.

Candidates spend several hours a day holed up in room, asking stranger after stranger to make campaign donations. The candidate usually has a couple of junior staffers dialing the phone for him or her, and another staff member is in the room keeping track of the necessary follow-up.

Before a candidate can start raising money in earnest, staff members do intensive research on prospective donors. The best way to reach most people these days is on their cell phone, and it takes a lot of work to track down cell phone numbers for wealthy donors.

Raising money this way is a grind, and I don’t think that anyone really enjoys it. Traditional candidates must secretly envy guys like U.S. Senate candidate Rand Paul, who can raise big money over the Internet from donors all over the country in events called “money bombs.”

If Paul is smart, he’ll use the extra time on his hands to campaign with Kentuckians who can actually vote for him.

Over-the-Top Award
On occasion, Julie and I will hand out awards to those in the political arena who have earned a little recognition.

This week’s award goes to fans of Councilwoman Tina Ward-Pugh, who aren’t content to show their support with only one bumper sticker on their cars. Apparently, it’s against the law to display only one “Tina Ward-Pugh” bumper sticker; I rarely see a car with fewer than two or three. Or, to be more precise, I should say Volkswagen van rather than car.

And Tina’s fans don’t just have a fetish for her bumper stickers – they seem to relish bumper stickers in general.

Whenever I’m driving around Crescent Hill or St. Matthews with my two girls, and we see a car with a hundred stickers on it, one of them will say, “There’s one of Tina’s friends!”  Then we play a game where we try to count all the Ward-Pugh stickers on the car.

I asked Ward-Pugh if she could explain this peculiar phenomenon.

“It’s that District 9 purple passion,” she said. “A great many of my supporters have been and will always be passionate about the people and issues they support. That translates into a purple Tina Ward-Pugh bumper sticker in the midst of most any cause worth considering.”

“I am always honored to see this … well … most always!” Ward-Pugh said.

Most people outside of Crescent Hill dislike bumper stickers. For example, I’ve never personally seen a “Julie Raque Adams” bumper sticker on a car. Even her mom wouldn’t take one.  Julie claims that her supporters prefer to be discreet about their devotion to her.

When I was running for Metro Council, I asked a good friend if she would take a bumper sticker. She said she’d rather write me a check for $1,000 than put a sticker on her car.

Best show on TV
If you’re not watching Tina Fey’s “30 Rock” Thursday nights on NBC, you’re missing out. On a recent show, Alec Baldwin’s character complained about the recession caused by “Comrade Obama.”

I’m pulling for Sarah Palin to run for something again just so we can see Fey revive her character on Saturday Night Live.

Julie and Ellen own Adams & Call Inc., a Louisville public affairs firm. Visit adamsandcall.com.