Obama's February Haul: $55 Million

Record Fundraising Total Eclipses Clinton's Numbers

(AP)  Democratic Sen. Barack Obama raised a record $55 million in February for his presidential campaign, eclipsing rival Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's own substantial fundraising for the month. All told, Obama has raised $193 million during his yearlong bid for the White House.

The campaign's announcement Thursday came two days after Obama lost three out of four primaries to Clinton. Clinton's victories stopped his winning streak and extended the race into an unpredictable future.

Obama's February total was his second fundraising record. He raised $36 million in January, more than any other presidential candidate who has ever been in a contested primary.

More than $54 million of the February money was for the primary election. His combined January and February totals nearly matched was he raised last year. The campaign said it raised $45 million through the Internet in February and had 385,000 new contributors for a total of more than 1 million donors.

Riding her victory wave, Clinton's camp announced Thursday that she raised $4 million online since Tuesday's presidential primary successes in Ohio, Texas and Rhode Island.

The Clinton campaign said it had raised the money from the time polls closed Tuesday through noon Thursday. It reported 30,000 new donors. The influx of money made their online total raised for this month $6 million, the campaign announced.

Clinton raised an impressive $35 million in February, a significant recovery from January when Obama raised more than twice her total. But Obama has outpaced her both in fundraising and spending during the nominating contests.

"We're going to have the funds we need to keep this campaign going, to keep Hillary Clinton's message out there," senior adviser Ann Lewis said in a teleconference with reporters.

Past victories have also caused upticks in giving. The Clinton campaign, for instance, raised more than $1 million in the 24 hours following her New Hampshire victory on Jan. 8. Obama raised $1.2 million the day after winning the Iowa caucuses and he raised even more in the 24 hours after losing in New Hampshire.

Clinton had to lend her campaign $5 million at the end of January, but has seen her finances improve since then. She reported raising $34 million for the primary in February.

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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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Obama and his allies outspent her in Texas and Ohio in advertising.

Both campaigns have been the top fundraisers of the entire presidential field, raising $100 million each in 2007.

[kmccliment]

nolalou,

BECAUSE YOUNG BARRY GAVE LUOIS F. THE OLD (WINK,WINK) WHEN HE DENOUNCED HIS SUPPORT. JUST LIKE HE LATER TOLD CANADA, DONT TAKE MY CAMPAIGN LITERALLY ON NAFTA ITS JUST POLITICAL CAMPAIGNING, ITS ALL GOOD...

[kmccliment]

WON 3 OUT OF 4!!! YEA BABY!!! YES WE CAN, YES WE CAN, YES WE CAN.. AMERICA I SMELL A CHANGE IN THE WIND AND IT SMELLS LIKE MICHELLE OBAMA WONT BE ABLE TO BE PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN ANY MORE.

[nolalou]

joandavis2, your attempt at satire (I''m assuming that''s what you were doing) is not funny, and typical racist BS! Obama has already publicly denounced Louis Farrakhan, why on earth do you think he would be in an Obama cabinet? joandavis2 get a life!

[abbe91]

"Do you get all oooey goooey when Hussein Obama speaks, Weak in the knees, hard in the shorts?
Posted by mbcsmith at 08:14 AM : Mar 07, 2008"

Not more that I''m impressed by the great USS Forrestal hero McSame ...

[mbcsmith]

but it will lessen their impact.


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Posted by flreason at 08:22 AM : Mar 07, 2008


You keep right on thinking that. You''ve been had.

[omega39-2009]

"Obama and his allies outspent her in Texas and Ohio in advertising." AND IT DIDN''''T WORK.
Posted by goldesprit

Sure it did, he closed a wide double digit lead to a narrow single digit lead in a matter of three weeks. If the election had been a couple of weeks later, Hillary would have been out.

[mistered9]

I think I bought a used car from Obama a few years back. It quit the minute I got on the road.
That''s what all his seeches are.
Hillary can beat McBush hands down.

[flreason]

"It ain''''t the mom and pops common folk funneling a $100 million to this Chicago politician."
Posted by mbcsmith

I''d be interested to know what data you are using to support your argument...or is it just an opinion? Over a million contributors would seem to very effectively argue that Obama is effectively convincing record numbers of individuals to contribute to his campaign. That kind of success will inevitably attract corporate dollars as well, but it will lessen their impact.

[flreason]

"Obama and his allies outspent her in Texas and Ohio in advertising." AND IT DIDN''''T WORK."
Posted by goldesprit

Considering the large number of Republican cross-over votes in the most recent primaries, it would be interesting to know how many of them were voting for Hillary at the suggestion of right-wing talk show hosts as a way to insure the Democrats would field the weakest candidate. We will never know, but it''s certainly something to think about, and should encourage Obama supporters to get to the polls in larger numbers in the remaining primaries.

[mbcsmith]

Looks like the neo cons are finding out we the people are going to decide now.

This is getting funnier by the minute with neo cons they don''''t have a clue.


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Posted by antoniof123 at 07:32 AM : Mar 07, 2008


Do you get all oooey goooey when Hussein Obama speaks, Weak in the knees, hard in the shorts? You''ve been had. It ain''t the mom and pops common folk funneling a $100 million to this Chicago politician.

[antoniof123]

Looks like the neo cons are finding out we the people are going to decide now.

This is getting funnier by the minute with neo cons they don''t have a clue.

[flreason]

goldesprit:

Since Hillary is touting the White House years as part of her qualifications, Obama would be remiss if he didn''t question how much of that experience was window dressing. One could certainly argue that her address to the women''s conference in China was, as in her charges against Obama, "only words." But that''s a lot of what diplomacy is...the ability to communicate with one''s opponents in a way that can impact their behavior and the behavior of their allies. With the incredible mess the current administration has created by disdaining diplomacy until too late in the game for it to be effective or believable, it makes it doubly important that the next President have negotiation skills. That''s the only way that the U.S. will be able to rebuild the kind of worldwide support we enjoyed for over a half-century previous to Bush2. Words do matter, particularly in international relations.

Obama has shown that he understands the power of words and can use them effectively and convincingly. That''s why his opponents are trying to paint his strength as a weakness. We need a leader capable of more finesse than "Bomb-bomb-bomb, bomb-bomb Iran."

[goldesprit]

"Obama and his allies outspent her in Texas and Ohio in advertising." AND IT DIDN''T WORK.

So now he wants to go back in time and crawl between the sheets between the Clintons to find out if they ever discussed heavy government issues AS MAN AND WIFE THAT WOULD HAVE AMOUNTED TO EXPERIENCE.

Then Barak wants to assist the Republicans in painting the picture of Bill Clinton advising Hillary once she is elected.

If Tthe Clintons want some measure of privacy or EVEN PRESIDENTIAL PRIVELEGE(!)--BARAK says Hillary therefore lacks experience, and he frowns.

If Hillary Clinton says that she did discuss with her significant other--significant things-- Obama will shout to the sky that he would never stoop so low.

That''s probably good--because his significant other just recently started to "really be proud" of the U.S.

[flreason]

"Obama gets as many corperate donations as anyone else as John Edwards pointed out. Only a moron thinks not taking money from "registered" federal lobbyist and political action comitee''''s means your not taking coperate money."
Posted by spinster2

Even if true, your observation misses the point that, with over a million individual donors, the corporations need Obama a lot more than Obama needs them. That means he will be less beholden to big business interests than Clinton and McCain, who depend on their big business donors for a larger percentage of their campaign cash.

No one is suggesting that Obama is a saint or a demi-god. He is, however, the closest thing to a populist candidate we have. And he seems to be working very hard at trying to run an ethical campaign. Those are two very compelling reasons to choose him rather than his opponents.

[goldesprit]

"Obama and his allies outspent her in Texas and Ohio in advertising." AND IT DIDN''T WORK.

So now he wants to go back in time and crawl between the sheets between the Clintons to find out if they ever discussed heavy government issues AS MAN AND WIFE THAT WOULD HAVE AMOUNTED TO EXPERIENCE.

Then Barak wants to assist the Republicans in painting the picture of Bill Clinton advising Hillary once she is elected.

If Tthe Clintons want some measure of privacy or EVEN PRESIDENTIAL PRIVELEGE(!)--BARAK says Hillary therefore lacks experience, and he frowns.

If Hillary Clinton says that she did discuss with her significant other--significant things-- Obama will shout to the sky that he would never stoop so low.

That''s probably good--because his significant other just recently started to "really be proud" of the U.S.

[spinster2]

It''s three oclock in the morning: ring,,,,ring,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,,,,,ring,,,,,,,,Hello,,,,,,,,,,,,,Hey Barack, This is Larry Sinclair.,,,,Can I come over?

[spinster2]

More than 90 percent of the donations were under $100, and more than half were under $25. Average donation was $75. Obama doesn''''t need corporate America to get elected. He''''s the closest thing to an outsider candidate since Perot in ''''92. He may not change the system since it''''s so corrupt, but I know he''''s going to try.

And Clinton? Geez, she owes favors to everyone. Corporations will be lining up with their special requests if by some insane reason she winds up being president.


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Posted by ontheleft
===========================================
Obama gets as many corperate donations as anyone else as John Edwards pointed out. Only a moron thinks not taking money from "registered" federal lobbyist and political action comitee''s means your not taking coperate money. LOL What a joke!

[rudy654-2009]

Posted by dumbshun at 12:44 AM

Is that what Limbaugh says?

[ontheleft]

More than 90 percent of the donations were under $100, and more than half were under $25. Average donation was $75. Obama doesn''t need corporate America to get elected. He''s the closest thing to an outsider candidate since Perot in ''92. He may not change the system since it''s so corrupt, but I know he''s going to try.

And Clinton? Geez, she owes favors to everyone. Corporations will be lining up with their special requests if by some insane reason she winds up being president.

[oldabeeagle]

The sacrifice SHOULD BE shared by all Americans.

G. W. and Cheney are the traitors. They send troops back to Iraq, tour after tour, for what? G. W. and Cheney have made Iran, Russia, and Venezuala stronger, while making the U. S. weak. Is G. W. going back to Saudia Arabia to kiss and dance with the king again? The Arabs are saying the oil is high because G. W. mismanaged the U. S. economy. The kisses and dances did not work. What will G. W. do next?

It does not matter if we are in Iraq for one more year or a hundred years. WHEN WE LEAVE, it will become an islamic theocracy. How many tours in Iraq do we expect from our brave soldiers.

This nation should not go to war unless our politicians have the courage to ask every American for sacrifice. The sacrifice SHOULD BE shared by all Americans.