Big Donors Bolster Obama's Grass Roots

Washington Post: Despite Talk Of Small Donors, Wealthy "Bundlers" Are Critical And Have A Prominent Role In Campaign

(Washingtonpost.com)  This story was written by Matthew Mosk and Alec MacGillis.

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Sen. Barack Obama credits his presidential campaign with creating a "parallel public financing system" built on a wave of modest donations from homemakers and high school teachers. Small givers, he said at a fundraiser this week, "will have as much access and influence over the course and direction of our campaign that has traditionally been reserved for the wealthy and the powerful."

But those with wealth and power also have played a critical role in creating Obama's record-breaking fundraising machine, and their generosity has earned them a prominent voice in shaping his campaign. Seventy-nine "bundlers," five of them billionaires, have tapped their personal networks to raise at least $200,000 each. They have helped the campaign recruit more than 27,000 donors to write checks for $2,300, the maximum allowed. Donors who have given more than $200 account for about half of Obama's total haul, which stands at nearly $240 million.

Obama's success in assembling bundlers offers another perspective on a campaign that promotes itself as a grass-roots effort. While the senator from Illinois has had unprecedented success generating small donations, many made online, the work of bundlers first signaled the seriousness of his candidacy a year ago and will be crucial as he heads into the final Democratic primaries with a lead against Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.).

The bundler list also sheds light on those who might seek to influence an Obama White House. It includes traditional Democratic givers -- Hollywood, trial lawyers and Wall Street -- and newcomers such as young hedge fund executives, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Chicago-based developers and members of the black business elite. One-third had never contributed to a presidential campaign, much less raised money.

The list includes partners from 18 top law firms, 21 Wall Street executives and power brokers from Fortune 500 companies. California is the top source, with 19 bundlers. Both Illinois and Washington, D.C., have six, and five hail from New York.

Among the group are businessmen such as Kenneth Griffin, a famously private 39-year-old billionaire who threw his support behind Obama's presidential campaign just as he hired a team of lobbyists to urge Congress to preserve a lucrative tax loophole.

A year ago, Griffin invited Obama to speak to employees of his Chicago hedge fund, Citadel Investment Group, and in subsequent months, employees and their families gave the candidate nearly $200,000. Griffin had previously backed Republicans, including Obama's initial U.S. Senate opponent.

Obama resisted Citadel's lobbying push, but a hedge fund executive who knows Griffin said he suspects Griffin's continued support owes to more than a desire to sway the senator on the tax issue. "Ken's a smart guy, and I guess he's done the math and decided that Barack is the best candidate," said Daniel Loeb, the chief executie of Third Point Management in New York.

Several on Obama's list at least appear to have interests in conflict with his platform. There is the billionaire casino developer who plans to put a slot parlor in Philadelphia; Obama has decried gambling for its steep "moral and social cost." And there is the director of General Dynamics, the military supplier that has seen profits soar since the onset of the Iraq war and that has benefited from at least one Obama earmark.

The use of bundlers was perfected by George W. Bush, who in 2000 and 2004 set some fundraising records that Obama has shattered. Bush established a competitive hierarchy of "Rangers" and "Pioneers," with tracking numbers to monitor fundraisers' progress and silver cuff links and belt buckles for high achievers.

Obama's bundlers help make up a more loosely defined "national finance committee," whose members are made to feel part of the campaign's inner workings through weekly conference calls and quarterly meetings at which they quiz the candidate or his strategists. At one meeting, bundlers urged the campaign to link Iraq war costs with the faltering economy. And they got an advance copy of Obama's Philadelphia speech in which he addressed the incendiary remarks of his longtime pastor.

Obama policy advisers also meet with bundlers and other top givers. Anthony Lake, who served as President Bill Clinton's national security adviser, has met with so many Obama contributors that, in an unusual move, the campaign credits him for funds raised when he conducts the meetings. He's on the top bundler list. "This is the first time I've ever gotten involved in this kind of work in a campaign," Lake said.

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The Money Race
Check out February tallies for Clinton, Obama and McCain, including how much they've raised and spent since the campaign began.

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Bush bundlers openly discussed the system's transactional nature -- more than 100 of the 246 Pioneers in 2000 received an administration job or appointment, and 23 became ambassadors. Obama's fundraisers say they see their work more selflessly.

Boston financier Alan Solomont, who leads Obama's Northeast fundraising, said many are rallying to the candidate because they expect that he will break with old traditions, such as rewarding big fundraisers. "There's nobody with their hand out," Solomont said. "People are doing this because they believe in this candidate."

The campaign maintains that its fundraising success among average Americans has lessened its reliance on big donors. Donations of less than $200 account for nearly half of Obama's contributions, compared with a third of Clinton's and a quarter of Sen. John McCain's, according to the Campaign Finance Institute. More than 1 million people have given money to Obama's campaign.

"In this campaign, outsized influence is given to the small donors," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.

[prinzowhales]

Obama is backed by the same gangsters who are backing the other two mainstream candidates...And, of course, his backers don''t want to believe that this matters.

Its a shame. Suddenly Obama is promoted in the media, becomes a brand name--"Change"--and everybody wants a can...Doesn''t matter to them that Obama and Clinton were made in the same laboratory...just like Canada Dry and Seagrams...same people make them both.

Obama is as unacceptable as Hillary...and McCain, for that matter. If you really want "change", you are not going to get it by voting for the same old crowd.

[moblou]

Kudos to CBS for finally printing the truth about Obama'' scampaign funds and some of the other issues surrounding his campaign. When will the rest of the MSM respond in kind?

[moblou]

Finally some more of the "truth about Obama". Don''t stop now because there is much more to be revealed.

[jockh]

Hillarys problem is that voters know how easily the Clintons lie; and that both Hillary and Bill would lie on a stack of bibles.

Misspeaking is one thing, repeating something over and over makes it a FLAT LIE !!
The Clintons simply cannot help themselves; they tell a big lie when a small lie will do. And they tell a small lie when the truth will do. After careful training from Bill, Hillary can lie out of both sides of her mouth at the same time even when there''s no particular reason to.
Lets face it, it takes a bare faced liar to confuse a hug from a little girl in Bosnia with the terror of running from sniper bullets.

If you are inclined to overlook Clinton lies just because Hillary is your favorite for nomination then just look at the trouble the country is in because of the lies of President Bush: one million Iraqis and over 4000 American servicemen dead; that%u2019s right DEAD, all because of lies. So you see, the lies of a President really do matter and God help America if the world famous misspeaking Clintons get elected.

[eroosevelt08]

It sounds as though the Republicans are purchasing the candidate to lose to Senator McCain.

[vmcneal2]

Obama claims to be American but he was born in Hawaii which is not a real state. Look at the people in Hawaii, they don''t look like real Americans!!!!

Obama''s father was born in Kenya, an Arab country and was the head of ETAH-SYKNOH, a super radical muslim. group. ETAH-SYKNOH spelled backwards is HATE HONKYS!!!

Obama claims he is not a racist but when he went bowling in Pensylvania he would only use a BLACK bowling ball!!!! Not only does this prove that Obama is a racist, but it showed that is also a lousy bowler. Real Americans don''t throw gutter balls.

Obama is a radical Muslim and if he gets in the White House the first thing he will do is ban all pork products in America. No more real bacon!!! I say "from my cold dead hands".

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by sjbj2322 at 07:41 PM : Apr 11, 2008

Well said!

[whitepicks2]

Lobbyists are listed as the #10 industry sector donation for McCain.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/indus.asp?id=N00006424&cycle=2008

Obama doesn''t take money from lobbyists.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/indus.asp?id=N00009638&cycle=2008

This does matter since lobbyist monies drown out the concerns of the populace. ''Lobbyists'' are listed at #20 top industry for Hillary.

http://www.opensecrets.org/pres08/indus.asp?id=N00000019&cycle=2008

Though, it really comes down to war...........

Vote McCain = a vote for endless, ambiguous war not only in Iraq but Iran - thousands more dead Americans.

Vote Obama = out of Iraq in 16 months.

[obama8years]

FOR People thinking Wrights Church is no big deal.
This was airbrushed off Jeremiah Wright%u2019s church%u2019s web site:

Before it was completely erased there was a warning there to blacks that whites are %u201Ccaptors%u201D and blacks %u201Ccaptives.%u201D

One reason whites seek to capture helpless black captives is to kill them. Kill them? Yes, that%u2019s what the site states: white %u201Ccaptors%u201D plot to kill black %u201Ccaptives.%u201D

Here is what used to be on the site:

%u201CClassic methodology on control of captives teaches that captors must keep the captive ignorant educationally, but trained sufficiently well to serve the system.

%u201CAlso, the captors must be able to identify the %u2018talented tenth%u2019 of those subjugated, especially those who show promise of providing the kind of leadership that might threaten the captor%u2019s control.

%u201CThose so identified as [sic] separated from the rest of the people by:

%u201CKilling them off directly, and/or fostering a social system that encourages them to kill off one another.%u201D

So-called %u201Cblack liberation theology%u201D is running throughout a lot of America%u2019s black church. This is of the devil. It is evil. It is racism%u2014powerfully so.

[kstar42]

He has only had 2 years in National Politics. Unbeleivable.


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Posted by obama8years at 06:29 PM : Apr 11, 2008
They think he''s the anti-christ.....whatever