Road For McCain Likely To Get Bumpier

Politico: Fundraising Concerns Cloud Start To General Campaign Versus Democrats

(The Politico)  This story was written by By Jonathan Martin.

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The rollout of John McCain’s general election campaign in the weeks since he became the de facto Republican nominee has not exactly been a textbook exercise in positive messaging.

McCain was accused of having a romantic relationship with a lobbyist by the New York Times (he vehemently denied it). The DNC filed a complaint against McCain with the Federal Election Commission questioning whether he is violating the spending limits imposed on a campaign that takes public funds. 

Mike Huckabee continued to nip at McCain’s heels, postponing a full pivot to the November race. And, just last week, McCain had to spend part of two days denouncing ostensible allies and apologizing to Barack Obama for the use of his middle name.

Oh - and Obama and Hillary Clinton raised more than $130 million combined in the first two months of the year.

At this point in the campaign, nothing seems to alarm Republicans more than the incessant sound of ringing cash registers coming from the other party. The jaw-dropping fundraising by Democrats - and Obama in particular - is leading Republican officials both in and out of McCain’s campaign to think that they’ll never be able to match the war chests of their likely rivals. And this from a party that traditionally has pummeled Democrats when it comes to fundraising.

Obama hasn’t disclosed yet what he raised in February, but it will likely be over $50 million. He brought in $36 million in January. Clinton raised $35 million in February, a month in which she lost 11 straight contests.

By contrast, McCain raised $12 million in January, when he was still locked in a hotly-contested GOP primary, and is believed to have raised about the same last month.

Asked by reporters at a campaign stop here how much he brought in last month, McCain said he was only certain of one thing.

“I can assure you it’s not nearly the amount raised by Sen. Obama and Sen. Clinton,” he said with a chuckle. “We’ve got a ways to go to catch up with them.”

Obama’s staggering sum is made all the more frightening for Republicans because much of it came over the internet in small sums - support that not only underscores Obama’s organic appeal but that also signals an ability to raise more money from a donor pool that now totals over one-million individuals. It’s the sort of cash-raising prowess that may dissuade Obama from abiding by the fundraising constraints that come with taking public funds - restraints he once said he would accept. McCain says he will opt for public financing.

It’s a show of strength that is spurring Republican strategists to reach for the sort of talking points that pop up whenever a candidate is going run at a financial disadvantage. Namely, those that minimize the importance of money.

“We don’t expect we’ll be able to compete dollar for dollar,” said Charlie Black, a top McCain adviser and presidential campaign veteran. “But between McCain and the RNC, we’ll raise as much as we can.”

There is, Black argued, “a point of diminishing returns” for a candidate with cash to burn.

“The DNC plus the Kerry campaign outspent Bush and the RNC when Bush was the sitting president,” he noted. “So money isn’t the only thing.”

Texas Gov. Rick Perry echoed Black, recalling a self-funding rival he easily dispatched in 2002.

“There’s a point in time where money is not what matters, ideas are what matters,” Perry said, speaking after a McCain event near Austin. “And I think that’s the big difference - [examining] John McCain and what he believes in versus Obama and his socialist agenda will be a very eye-opening moment for Amercans.”

Still, there are few more prized assets in politics than a distinct fundraising advantage. It would enable Obama (or Clinton, for that matter) to compete in more states, with the resources for more ads, more mail and more staff. And such an effort to broaden the map would result in McCain having to expend defensive capital on terrain Republicans haven’t had to worry about in recent years.

“They’ve got a significant fundraising advantage,” conceded Tucker Eskew, an unaligned Republican strategist who worked on the Bush campaign in 2000. “No question, this is a tough climate,” he said, alluding to the low ratings of the incumbent and the party label.

But McCain is a “tough customer,” Eskew added and, given his track record, can probably get away more than most presidential hopefuls “with a scrappier operation.”

McCain backers hope to counter bulging Democratic coffers by playing exactly to those strengths. Though it’s more difficult in the general election, strategists want to try to keep a steady slate of his beloved town hall meetings, allowing for regular voter interaction.

And McCain will also endeavor to earn as much media attention as possible by keeping up his free-and-easy style with reporters. He’ll continue to mingle both on his bus and also on his plane - always on the record.

And then there are events like the one he held Sunday at his cabin amid the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona. He and his wife, Cindy, hosted dozens of national reporters at their family get-away, the candidate personally manning the grill and bantering with reporters in between doling out racks of ribs. This, for what it was worth, was also on the record.

Earned media opportunities aside, the McCain campaign also will lean on the RNC to help supplement their messaging against and to augment their voter contact effort. The committee enjoys a sizable fundraising advantage over its Democratic counterpart, and much of that money will go toward helping McCain once Mike Huckabee is out of the race. Republican congressional committees, it should be noted, face a wide fundraising gap with their Democratic counterparts and might also want RNC help.

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The Money Race
Check out January tallies for Republicans and Democrats including how much they've raised and spent since the campaign began.

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Others in McCain’s orbit predict that their fundraising disparity will ease some once Huckabee finally quits and the Arizonan is the official nominee

“We’ve got to win our nomination to get our fundraising going,” said Phil Gramm, a former Texas senator and top McCain backer.

One bright spot, he said, is that while many high-dollar Democratic donors have already weighed in with a check, many of the Republican financiers who underwrote President Bush’s two campaigns have yet to fully engage.

“We have a larger pool [of top donors] to go to than they do,” he said.

McCain’s campaign seems to be steering a course somewhere between a clear-eyed recognition of reality and an effort to develop effective spin. In any event, aides recognize that the money gap won’t make steering through the already-stiff headwinds of this cycle any easier.

“We’re going to treat as McCain as the underdog,” Black said. “He usually is at his best when he runs as the underdog.”

[taotxzen]

Newsweek:

What We Actually Know About McCain and Iseman?

So was his relationship with Iseman even a cause for concern?

Absolutely. Just ask John Weaver. McCain''s closest confidant at the time, Weaver has openly admitted to numerous media outlets (including the Times, the Washington Post, Politico and the National Review) that, according to the Post, he "met with Vicki Iseman at the Center Cafe at Union Station and urged her to stay away from McCain"; Iseman confirmed the encounter. According to the Times, the meeting came after she began "turning up with [McCain] at fund-raisers, visiting his offices and accompanying him on a client%u2019s corporate jet."

Did McCain actually do anything wrong?

Depends how you define the word "wrong." If we''re talking legally wrong, then no; McCain''s hands are clean. But that''s not really the issue. Both the Times and the Post report that McCain accepted more than $100,000 in campaign donations from interests represented by Iseman and her firm before taking actions at Isenman''s urging that were intended to benefit the lobbyist''s clients--and drawing a rare rebuke for interference from the head of the FCC. (McCain denies discussing the issue with Iseman; Iseman says she sent information to his staff.)

(cont)

[taotxzen]

(cont)

This sort of chronology, which raises suspicions of influence peddling, is par for the course in Washington. But over the past 20 years, McCain has styled himself a crusader for reform, routinely launching stinging critiques of lobbyists and maintaining that he has "never, ever done a favor for any lobbyist or special interest group." Now there''s Iseman on one side of the story, "[speaking] up regularly at meetings of telecom lobbyists in Washington" to "extoll... her connections to McCain and his office," according to the Post. On the other side, there''s a cabal of worried staffers struggling to separate her from McCain--and, in so doing, tacitly conceding that McCain''s connection to this particular woman was stronger and stranger than any of his dozens of other relationships with lobbyists. And in the middle is the senator himself, perhaps betraying the intensity of that connection in a series of "highly unusual" moves that look a whole lot like favors.

Forget the "romantic relationship"; at this point, it remains a huge, hovering question mark. For now, whether you think McCain did anything wrong depends largely on whether you believe he should be held to the standards of "politics as usual"--or whether he should be held to the standards he''s set for himself.

[workingchump]

Mccain is the least socialist candidate left. If you work hard for a living...why give more of your income to expand social programs that are abused to no end. The Government if inefficient at everything the do....why give them more money to squander.

[watcher269-2009]

What are they trying to HIDE?

The Bush administration%u2019s Executive Order 13233 underscores the new fact that presidential legacies, once the domain of academic historians and parlor game aficionados, have become a serious business %u2014 so much so that a president has mounted a Kremlinesque campaign to stifle the free dissemination of information. The Bush administration is playing for keeps.

Bush%u2019s Executive Order 13233 could change history %u2014 literally %u2014 by restricting historians%u2019 access to materials that help them document and ultimately judge a president%u2019s actions, lapses, and principles.

Executive Order 13233 gives ex-presidents nearly unlimited discretionary authority to prohibit the release of their papers, and allows them to name designees who can act in their stead. Moreover, a sitting president may also prevent the release of a predecessor%u2019s papers %u2014 as Bush has already done with some of Ronald Reagan%u2019s papers %u2014 even when the predecessor has authorized his papers%u2019 release. These are radical encroachments on the public%u2019s access to documents that were produced in the public interest, at public expense, by officials elected by the public. Citizens can challenge these decisions in court, but the expense and time commitment will discourage most people from trying.

[wfbdem]

Good thing McCain has the bigoted mysogistic vote this year. And I thought the Klan was sitting this year out

Vote for McCain = You hate America.

[wfbdem]

Good thing McCain has the bigoted mysogistic vote this year. And I thought the Klan was sitting this year out

Vote for McCain = You hate America.

[wfbdem]

Good thing McCain has the bigoted mysogistic vote this year. And I thought the Klan was sitting this year out

Vote for McCain = You hate America.

[pilgrimsway-2009]

Can you not see the reflection of Jesus%u2019s face in His blood as he hung on the cross for you! This was His love for you! And no devil can not stop it! At the cross He took everything His father had to dish out on sin! This love can be applied to you no matter where you%u2019re at in your life period. This love is Holy blood that came down from heaven for you at the cross! And now you have the opportunity to experience it! God loves you! Come to him today! My prayer in tears is %u201Cwill you not call on Him?%u201D Jesus rose from the dead! He is listening to your response! For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved! The LORD in Heaven wants you to reach out to you in faith! Jesus is alive! Waiting for you! To call on Him!


Besides the point
All these posts are scared of me because they looked up my heritage!

Road For McCain Likely To Get Bumpier

?

Now that has got to be the understatement of the season. When the Dems finally get things sorted and turn their attention on him, he''s gonna wonder where the road went. It''s gonna be so much fun to watch...

[creeper00]

You''d think by now Republicans would''ve figured out that running a Bush a$$-kisser like McCain is why their fundraising is in the dumpster.

[pilgrimsway-2009]

Can you not see the reflection of Jesus%u2019s face in His blood as he hung on the cross for you! This was His love for you! And no devil can not stop it! At the cross He took everything His father had to dish out on sin! This love can be applied to you no matter where you%u2019re at in your life period. This love is Holy blood that came down from heaven! And now you have the opportunity to experience it! God loves you! Come to him today! My prayer in tears is %u201Cwill you not call on Him?%u201D Jesus rose from the dead! He is listening to your response! For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved! The LORD in Heaven wants you to reach out to Him in faith! Jesus is alive! Waiting for you!
I want the best for the Lord in your lifetime!

[mcvet]

%u201CWe%u2019re going to treat as McCain as the underdog,%u201D Black said. %u201CHe usually is at his best when he runs as the underdog.%u201D

ROFLMAO Right! He''s the Underdog and has to run with Bush in the White House!! ROFLMAO He won''t be able to get much outside the fascist south folks. American''s are sick to death of the Fascist and McCain can''t get away from them. He''s had to snuggle up to close to them to get here. LOL Bush and McCain and more of the same.

[mcvet]

Posted by pilgrimsway at 06:12 PM : Mar 03, 2008
+ report abuse

Haven''t lost it just a wee bit there have you pal? Sieg Heil and Amen!!

[miles1967-2009]

Thats what you get when you forego all of your principles, change your position on several issues, continue to advocate for the wrong war, and go to bed with the religious right and kooks like Hagee!! You made you bed McCain the "Maverick" now lie in it. If you were to become president, I am confident that you would be as bad as Bush in letting your domestic and foreign policies be guided by the likes of *** Cheney, Karl Rove, Gary Bauer, and Rumsfeld. Obama in 08!!

[singingrick]

pilgrimsway

Sacrifice is so archaic. What kind of bloodthirsty God sends his son to die a horrible, bloody death for his amusement? I''ll answer that for you. The same kind of God men invented in the dark ages. You can take poor Jesus down from the cross now. Have a little decency for God''s sake. He''s been dead as a doorknob for two thousand years.

[excoachken]

The reason the "road gets bumpier" is that senile John McCain is willing to throw anybody under the bus for a handful of votes!

[pilgrimsway-2009]

Can you not see the reflection of Jesus%u2019s face in His blood as he hung on the cross for you! This was His love for you! And no devil can not stop it! At the cross He took everything His father had to dish out on sin! This love can be applied to you no matter where you%u2019re at in your life period. This love is Holy blood that came down from heaven! And now you have the opportunity to experience it! God loves you! Come to him today! My prayer in tears is %u201Cwill you not call on Him?%u201D Jesus rose from the dead! He is listening to your response! For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved! The LORD in Heaven wants you to reach out to Him in faith!

[glossypan]

In 1948, for the first time pollsters used only telephone surveys for opinion poll data. Thomas Dewey was projected to win the presidency. Newspapers were so confident of the outcome that they printed "Dewey Wins Presidency" front pages before voting ended. While the Republicans prepared to celebrate, the Democratic nominee, Harry Truman, rented a sleeping room. He awoke early Wednesday morning and was surprised to learn that he had been elected.
What happened?
The affluent voters, those who could afford telephones, did vote overwhelmingly Republican. I think we may be seeing a little of the same phenomenom this year. 40% of Americans now use only cellphones - no more land line. With no database for cellphone numbers, all media polling is done by landline. It is my belief that the cell only users - younger, poorer and more mobile than landline users, are more likely to vote for Democrats and more likely to support Obama.
**
This post is in no way meant as a slap at iceman_1960, whose very well thought-out opinions I have come to value.

[iceman_1960]

"This love is Holy blood that came down from heaven!"
- Posted by pilgrimsway at 06:12 PM : Mar 03, 2008
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You"re sick.

This is a good example of the morbid OCD obsessions of religion, that drive people nuts.

[iceman_1960]

From crusherking"s posted website, pollsters.com...

Here is crusherking"s idea of "predicting Clinton will WIN BIG":


"For the Democrats, Obama has gained over the last month, but the latest round of surveys are neither consistent nor powerful enough to tell who would win if the Iowa Caucuses were held today. And obviously, with the race as close as it appears to be, changes over the next two weeks could also prove decisive.

And now the race goes "behind the dark side of the moon," as it were, given the challenges of polling between Christmas and New Year''s. I will have more to say about that very soon.

-- Mark Blumenthal

December 21, 2007 in Iowa, Likely Voters, The 2008 Race"

http://www.pollster.com/blogs/iowa_where_things_stand.php