(from yahoo. personally, i've never thought hillary would win the nomination and i'm sure thse type of numbers from obama her freaking her people out. but watch out for edwards. should he decide richardson for his VP, then it'll make for a competitive D v. R after Feb '09)
Obama raises $25M from 100,000 donors By NEDRA PICKLER, Associated Press Writer
14 minutes ago
Democrat Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record) raked in $25 million for his presidential bid in the first three months of 2007, placing him on a par with front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton and dashing her image as the party's inevitable nominee.
The donations came from an eye-popping 100,000 donors, the campaign said in a statement.
The figure was the latest evidence that Obama, a political newcomer who has served just two years in the Senate, has emerged as the most powerful new force in presidential politics this year. It also reinforced his status as a significant threat to Clinton, who'd hoped her own $26 million first quarter fundraising total would begin to squeeze her rivals out of contention.
The campaign reported that the figure included at least $23.5 million that he can spend on the highly competitive primary race. The Clinton campaign has yet to disclose how much they can use for the primary verses money that is designated for the general election.
While Clinton has honed a vast national fundraising network through two Senate campaigns and her husband's eight years as president, Obama launched his bid for the White House with a relatively small donor base concentrated largely in Illinois, his home state. But his early opposition to the Iraq war and voter excitement over his quest to be the first black president quickly fueled a powerful fundraising machine.
More than half the donors contributed via the Internet a total of $6.9 million, the campaign said.
"This overwhelming response, in only a few short weeks, shows the hunger for a different kind of politics in this country and a belief at the grassroots level that Barack Obama can bring out the best in America to solve our problems," said Obama finance chairwoman Penny Pritzker.
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
Tuesday, April 3, 2007
Romney Outpaces GOP Pack in Fundraising
(from The Washington Post. Oh! and can i just say that the best part about Hardball last night was Kevin Madden who, my room-mates and I all agree, is just about the hotest campaign man we've seen in a long time. *wink*)
Romney Outpaces GOP Pack in Fundraising
McCain's Team Regroups at No. 3
By Matthew Mosk and Perry Bacon Jr.
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, April 3, 2007; A01
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney provided a jolt to the Republican presidential contest yesterday, reporting a haul of $21 million in the first three months of the year, as Sen. John McCain of Arizona posted a lackluster third-place finish that even his campaign manager called a disappointment.
As campaigns release their first meaningful fundraising figures in what appears certain to become the most expensive presidential campaign in history, McCain's $12.5 million total also put him behind former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who leads the Republican field in public polls and reported taking in $15 million in the first quarter.
Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) has set the pace for the field so far, reporting Sunday that she had raised $26 million in combined primary and general election funds and transferred an additional $10 million from her Senate campaign account. Her total was followed by that of former North Carolina senator John Edwards, who raised $14 million. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois has so far declined to release figures for his campaign.
The totals of the major contenders easily surpassed the record $8.9 million raised by Al Gore in the first three months of 1999.
Romney has labored in single digits in polling but has been an aggressive fundraiser. He launched his campaign with a "National Call Day" at the convention center in Boston in January, where nearly 400 of his supporters, including Meg Whitman, the chief executive of eBay, and Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt called friends to ask them to back Romney. The event raised a whopping $6.5 million in a single day.
But the showing by McCain, who had been ordained the front-runner in the GOP contest from Day One and had worked to win over many of the fundraising Pioneers and Rangers who helped fill President Bush's coffers in 2000 and 2004, was a surprise to both analysts and rival campaigns. Most characterized the numbers as an unexpected sign of distress for a campaign that has been building its machinery for eight years and was one of the first to set up a fundraising committee.
"By any historical measure, $12.5 million is a lot of money," said Alex Vogel, a Republican strategist not affiliated with any candidate. "But McCain was the front-runner for so long, the expectation was he would not come in third."
McCain campaign manager Terry Nelson acknowledged as much yesterday, coupling his release of the dollar figure with the gloomy admission that "we had hoped to do better."
Nelson said the campaign has begun to aggressively revamp its fundraising operations and insisted in an interview that the showing does not reflect a lack of support for the Arizona senator.
"While we wish we would have done better in this quarter, certainly we did well enough to fight an effective campaign, which is what we're going to do," he said.
Nelson added that a new system of accountability, including targets for individual fundraisers, has been established for the members of McCain's finance team. The campaign also announced that its general co-chairman, former Texas congressman Tom Loeffler, recently was put in charge of fundraising and began a review of fundraising operations.
In interviews yesterday, key 2008 fundraisers blamed McCain's lackluster quarter on a host of shortcomings, most notably his difficulty summoning support from traditional Republican donors who were unhappy about his campaign finance reform agenda in the Senate and his earlier clashes with Bush.
"I think there are a lot of people out there who got turned off during the South Carolina primary eight years ago and never returned," said Richard Hug, who won Ranger designation because he raised more than $200,000 for Bush's campaign efforts.
"It was very bitter," said Hug, who is assisting Giuliani. "I don't think [McCain] has a whole lot of support among the Bush people in general."
Wayne Berman, a Washington lobbyist and Bush Pioneer who is backing McCain, said yesterday that the disappointing figures stem from a failure to organize large donor events earlier in the year. He said the campaign held just a handful of events in January and February, and started to pick up the pace in March, with 23 fundraisers.
"The opportunities simply weren't there for people to give," Berman said.
But Berman discounted the impact the numbers would have on the campaign moving forward. He said McCain already has two dozen events scheduled for April and a similar number on the books for May.
A large fundraising take at this stage "is hugely important if you have to prove you are a credible candidate," Berman said. "McCain is an enormously credible candidate already. He is extremely visible, and is the most visible on the most difficult and defining issue of the day. He's in Iraq, he's on TV, he's talking about the broader war on terror."
In the first quarter, the candidate who benefited the most was Romney. In addition to announcing his formidable total, his campaign also pointed out that all the money he raised can be spent in the primaries. Romney also lent his campaign about $2 million, putting his total figure closer to $23 million.
Scott Reed, a Republican strategist who is not affiliated with a 2008 campaign, said Romney "cemented his position as a first-tier candidate."
"This reinforces the notion that he can go the distance," Reed said.
Ronald C. Kaufman, a lobbyist who has been advising Romney on his fundraising effort, said the candidate built on a range of connections he has made over his lifetime. He said donors included supporters from Michigan, where Romney's father served as governor; contacts from his career as a management consultant, running the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002 and serving as Massachusetts governor; as well as fellow Mormons.
"I think he did a really good job of tapping into all those worlds," Kaufman said.
Romney's showing rivaled the almost $30 million that then-candidate Bush raised in the second quarter of 1999.
Early success in fundraising is no guarantee of results at the ballot box. In 1995, then-Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas raised more than $8 million and had $13.5 million on hand at the end of the first quarter of campaigning, but he did not stay in the Republican contest beyond a fifth-place finish in Iowa.
Fergus Cullen, a former Gramm staffer who is now the chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, said experience taught him that McCain, a candidate with a formidable campaign organization in the state, should not be counted out.
"I know firsthand that money isn't everything," said Cullen, who is not backing a candidate in the Republican primary. Gramm "had all the money and none of the votes."
Because full campaign finance reports will not be available until April 15, it is unclear just how much of a financial handicap McCain will face. None of the candidates have released figures on how much they spent during the first quarter, and among the Republicans, only Giuliani announced how much money remained in his account when March ended.
Giuliani aides announced that he had raised $15 million overall, $14 million of which is eligible to be spent in the primaries, and had $11 million in cash on hand.
Jack Oliver, who headed Bush's finance effort, said it is "critical to look at what the burn rate is." He said, "If it cost you a lot of money to raise these amounts, they aren't nearly as much help."
Staff writers Dan Balz and Michael D. Shear contributed to this report.
Romney Outpaces GOP Pack in Fundraising
McCain's Team Regroups at No. 3
By Matthew Mosk and Perry Bacon Jr.
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, April 3, 2007; A01
Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney provided a jolt to the Republican presidential contest yesterday, reporting a haul of $21 million in the first three months of the year, as Sen. John McCain of Arizona posted a lackluster third-place finish that even his campaign manager called a disappointment.
As campaigns release their first meaningful fundraising figures in what appears certain to become the most expensive presidential campaign in history, McCain's $12.5 million total also put him behind former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani, who leads the Republican field in public polls and reported taking in $15 million in the first quarter.
Among Democrats, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) has set the pace for the field so far, reporting Sunday that she had raised $26 million in combined primary and general election funds and transferred an additional $10 million from her Senate campaign account. Her total was followed by that of former North Carolina senator John Edwards, who raised $14 million. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois has so far declined to release figures for his campaign.
The totals of the major contenders easily surpassed the record $8.9 million raised by Al Gore in the first three months of 1999.
Romney has labored in single digits in polling but has been an aggressive fundraiser. He launched his campaign with a "National Call Day" at the convention center in Boston in January, where nearly 400 of his supporters, including Meg Whitman, the chief executive of eBay, and Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt called friends to ask them to back Romney. The event raised a whopping $6.5 million in a single day.
But the showing by McCain, who had been ordained the front-runner in the GOP contest from Day One and had worked to win over many of the fundraising Pioneers and Rangers who helped fill President Bush's coffers in 2000 and 2004, was a surprise to both analysts and rival campaigns. Most characterized the numbers as an unexpected sign of distress for a campaign that has been building its machinery for eight years and was one of the first to set up a fundraising committee.
"By any historical measure, $12.5 million is a lot of money," said Alex Vogel, a Republican strategist not affiliated with any candidate. "But McCain was the front-runner for so long, the expectation was he would not come in third."
McCain campaign manager Terry Nelson acknowledged as much yesterday, coupling his release of the dollar figure with the gloomy admission that "we had hoped to do better."
Nelson said the campaign has begun to aggressively revamp its fundraising operations and insisted in an interview that the showing does not reflect a lack of support for the Arizona senator.
"While we wish we would have done better in this quarter, certainly we did well enough to fight an effective campaign, which is what we're going to do," he said.
Nelson added that a new system of accountability, including targets for individual fundraisers, has been established for the members of McCain's finance team. The campaign also announced that its general co-chairman, former Texas congressman Tom Loeffler, recently was put in charge of fundraising and began a review of fundraising operations.
In interviews yesterday, key 2008 fundraisers blamed McCain's lackluster quarter on a host of shortcomings, most notably his difficulty summoning support from traditional Republican donors who were unhappy about his campaign finance reform agenda in the Senate and his earlier clashes with Bush.
"I think there are a lot of people out there who got turned off during the South Carolina primary eight years ago and never returned," said Richard Hug, who won Ranger designation because he raised more than $200,000 for Bush's campaign efforts.
"It was very bitter," said Hug, who is assisting Giuliani. "I don't think [McCain] has a whole lot of support among the Bush people in general."
Wayne Berman, a Washington lobbyist and Bush Pioneer who is backing McCain, said yesterday that the disappointing figures stem from a failure to organize large donor events earlier in the year. He said the campaign held just a handful of events in January and February, and started to pick up the pace in March, with 23 fundraisers.
"The opportunities simply weren't there for people to give," Berman said.
But Berman discounted the impact the numbers would have on the campaign moving forward. He said McCain already has two dozen events scheduled for April and a similar number on the books for May.
A large fundraising take at this stage "is hugely important if you have to prove you are a credible candidate," Berman said. "McCain is an enormously credible candidate already. He is extremely visible, and is the most visible on the most difficult and defining issue of the day. He's in Iraq, he's on TV, he's talking about the broader war on terror."
In the first quarter, the candidate who benefited the most was Romney. In addition to announcing his formidable total, his campaign also pointed out that all the money he raised can be spent in the primaries. Romney also lent his campaign about $2 million, putting his total figure closer to $23 million.
Scott Reed, a Republican strategist who is not affiliated with a 2008 campaign, said Romney "cemented his position as a first-tier candidate."
"This reinforces the notion that he can go the distance," Reed said.
Ronald C. Kaufman, a lobbyist who has been advising Romney on his fundraising effort, said the candidate built on a range of connections he has made over his lifetime. He said donors included supporters from Michigan, where Romney's father served as governor; contacts from his career as a management consultant, running the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002 and serving as Massachusetts governor; as well as fellow Mormons.
"I think he did a really good job of tapping into all those worlds," Kaufman said.
Romney's showing rivaled the almost $30 million that then-candidate Bush raised in the second quarter of 1999.
Early success in fundraising is no guarantee of results at the ballot box. In 1995, then-Sen. Phil Gramm of Texas raised more than $8 million and had $13.5 million on hand at the end of the first quarter of campaigning, but he did not stay in the Republican contest beyond a fifth-place finish in Iowa.
Fergus Cullen, a former Gramm staffer who is now the chairman of the New Hampshire Republican Party, said experience taught him that McCain, a candidate with a formidable campaign organization in the state, should not be counted out.
"I know firsthand that money isn't everything," said Cullen, who is not backing a candidate in the Republican primary. Gramm "had all the money and none of the votes."
Because full campaign finance reports will not be available until April 15, it is unclear just how much of a financial handicap McCain will face. None of the candidates have released figures on how much they spent during the first quarter, and among the Republicans, only Giuliani announced how much money remained in his account when March ended.
Giuliani aides announced that he had raised $15 million overall, $14 million of which is eligible to be spent in the primaries, and had $11 million in cash on hand.
Jack Oliver, who headed Bush's finance effort, said it is "critical to look at what the burn rate is." He said, "If it cost you a lot of money to raise these amounts, they aren't nearly as much help."
Staff writers Dan Balz and Michael D. Shear contributed to this report.
Monday, April 2, 2007
McCain only raises $12.5 million
from Hotline -- seriously one of my favorite websites -- reports that McCain only raised $12.5 million. for the "front-runner" that pretty much stinks. and i can not emphasize enough that the liberal toying of the RNC field by declaring we merely anoint the next-in-line is WRONG. obviously we are more intelligent than to work on mere political pedigree.
romney is the winner. guiliani will be plagued by the kerik trial, tommy thompson doesn't have a whole lot of traction, and fred thompson won't be able to swallow the financial distance because the hollywood money does not go to republicans. that leaves the others in the field and, quite frankly, at this point the field is down to the top three.
to quote a famous Congressman: "Romney is the next Reagan." 'Enough said.
romney is the winner. guiliani will be plagued by the kerik trial, tommy thompson doesn't have a whole lot of traction, and fred thompson won't be able to swallow the financial distance because the hollywood money does not go to republicans. that leaves the others in the field and, quite frankly, at this point the field is down to the top three.
to quote a famous Congressman: "Romney is the next Reagan." 'Enough said.
Romney 1st quarter fundraising tops field
(from Hotline. i don't care what you say...this is AMAZING!!! and for those relying on all those polling stats, all i have to say -- not to feed the machine of insanity -- is that 8% nation-wide polling on name recognition can be eaten up by this type of numbers. CONGRATS TO THE ROMNEY TEAM!)
April 02, 2007
More Romney Details
From the campaign:
Romney for President raised $23 million in total receipts for the First Quarter ending March 31, 2007.
The Campaign opted to raise no general election funds and raised $20.63 million in primary contributions.
The total includes a $2.35 million loan from Governor Romney and a $20,000 transfer from his 1994 Senate campaign.
Contributions were received from all 50 States and Washington, D.C.
Romney Raises $23M -- Tops GOP Field
Ex-MA Gov. Mitt Romney raised $23M this quarter, more than enough to top the field of Republican contenders.
That Romney was able to squeeze so many low hanging fruit sources in what has inarguably been a rough political quarter for him speaks highly of the relationships he’s cultivated over these years. It's also a testament to his fundraising team, led by Spencer Zwick, and the campaign's technologically advanced ComMitt activism platform. All Romney's money was raised into his primary campaign accounts.
Romney's burn rate -- tbd.
We await Sen. John McCain to report in. That might happen tomorrow.
His advisers are steeling themselves for a sobering number. Our educated estimate is that, of the top tier Republicans, McCain will raise the third most amount of money and have the third most on hand.
April 02, 2007
More Romney Details
From the campaign:
Romney for President raised $23 million in total receipts for the First Quarter ending March 31, 2007.
The Campaign opted to raise no general election funds and raised $20.63 million in primary contributions.
The total includes a $2.35 million loan from Governor Romney and a $20,000 transfer from his 1994 Senate campaign.
Contributions were received from all 50 States and Washington, D.C.
Romney Raises $23M -- Tops GOP Field
Ex-MA Gov. Mitt Romney raised $23M this quarter, more than enough to top the field of Republican contenders.
That Romney was able to squeeze so many low hanging fruit sources in what has inarguably been a rough political quarter for him speaks highly of the relationships he’s cultivated over these years. It's also a testament to his fundraising team, led by Spencer Zwick, and the campaign's technologically advanced ComMitt activism platform. All Romney's money was raised into his primary campaign accounts.
Romney's burn rate -- tbd.
We await Sen. John McCain to report in. That might happen tomorrow.
His advisers are steeling themselves for a sobering number. Our educated estimate is that, of the top tier Republicans, McCain will raise the third most amount of money and have the third most on hand.
Friday, March 30, 2007
Fundraising Reports Not Likely To Pack Knockout in WH Race
(from the politico)
Fundraising Reports Not Likely To Pack Knockout in WH Race
By: Jeanne Cummings and Kenneth P. Vogel
March 29, 2007 08:48 AM EST
The much hyped first-quarter fundraising deadline for presidential candidates is unlikely to fundamentally scramble the leader board of either party, an outcome that will surely increase pressure on them to keep up the pace in the next quarter.
Fear of being caught by surprise by a competitor and knocked out of the top tier has driven all the campaigns into a frenzied money-raising mode. Fundraising events are scheduled right up to Saturday's midnight deadline.
The tallies for the first three months of this year, due to the Federal Election Commission by April 15, are likely to set a first-quarter fundraising record. And the presidential campaign is expected to be the nation's first $1 billion race.
"Everybody's going to have a decent quarter," predicted Fred Baron, finance chairman for Democratic hopeful John Edwards.
So while there may be some reordering of the top fields, it appears as though a knockout punch is not in the offing. Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and Edwards and Republicans John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney are the front-runners going into Saturday's deadline and expected to remain after it, even if one falls short in the expectations game.
That could mean the broader impact of the first-quarter reports will be twofold: Elevating the importance of second-quarter fundraising, when the front-runners must show they can maintain momentum, and providing a pecking order to the second-tier candidates who are trying to cling to fourth place and a chance to break through later.
Republicans Fear 2008 Meltdown
Hispanics Go To 'War' With PBS
GOP Sets Sights on Recapturing Bay Area Seat
"The candidates now are generally gathering donations from core supporters and pre-identified donors," said Anthony J. Corrado Jr., a campaign finance expert at Colby College in Maine. "In the second quarter, we will see who is moving beyond their base and building a national fundraising base."
The primary reason for this cycle's heated first-quarter pace is Edwards' surprising showing in 2003, when he outraised Democratic front-runner John F. Kerry and catapulted to the top of the primary field.
But later quarters also have a history of reshaping primary contests. In 1999, George W. Bush raised $29.5 million between April and July 1 when he was governor of Texas, and within weeks, lesser-funded candidates began dropping out of the GOP race. In 2003, Howard Dean pulled in $15 million in the third quarter, dramatically reshaping the primary's leading candidate roster and elevating the war in Iraq as an issue.
Republican Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, is trying to emerge as his party's candidate of choice for conservatives much as Dean captured the Democrat's liberal wing. "The debates are going to really start showing what the candidates are about and, on those nights, we're not going to be wearing name tags with how much money we raised," Huckabee said.
Even so, in these final hours of the first quarter, the candidates are still racing for last-minute donations.
Huckabee will hold a Washington fundraiser Thursday night headlined by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska). Clinton and Obama, as well as Romney, will close the quarter with events in Florida. Edwards continues a tour through West Virginia, Indiana and Ohio before winding up at a Saturday fundraising event in home state North Carolina.
Candidates hoping to become "tier jumpers" are also working the circuit and many have the ability to record their own eye-catching numbers in the first quarter. And former FEC chairman Michael E. Toner says that could draw fresh attention from the news media and donors "and suddenly you have to treat them like they're in the top tier."
Much attention will focus on Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who ended the year with nearly $5 million in his campaign account that can be transferred to his presidential coffers. He also can tap his wealthy hometown constituents and others in nearby New York. His ascendance to chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee provides an advantage by bringing him into regular contact with deep-pocketed lobbyists and executives.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a Cabinet secretary in the Clinton administration, has a history of generating cash. He raised $14 million for his reelection campaign last year. He also has a national fundraising network cultivated during his leadership of the Democratic Governors Association and the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
His campaign manager, Dave Contarino, says Richardson will have a "respectable" first quarter total. But his primary focus will be on the early primary states, particularly nearby Nevada.
"We believe that the governor has a lot of attributes that Westerners like and that the voters in Nevada will like. We're going to be expected to show something in Nevada, but that doesn't change the fact that in Iowa, where I realize that the press has zero expectations for the governor, and maybe New Hampshire, where they have zero plus one, we expect our candidate to do quite well," Contarino said. He added: "If we can show momentum and start to take off, then the money will follow."
Similar strategies are being adopted on the Republican side. Former Wisconsin governor Tommy G. Thompson, who served in the Bush Cabinet, raised $6.5 million for his last gubernatorial campaign in 1998, giving him a home state base to tap. On the presidential field, he is banking on a good showing in the Aug. 11 straw poll in Iowa to elevate his candidacy later in the cycle, says spokesman Tony Jewell.
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) has also been quietly working Iowa, hoping his deep roots in the agriculture community and long-standing ties to the conservative wing of the GOP will give him momentum. But he's got competition for the conservative moniker from Huckabee and former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore.
Gilmore did not hold his first fundraiser until Monday, a week before the end of the first quarter. His campaign consultant, Christian Josi, said Gilmore raised $200,000 and will pick up the fundraising pace in the second quarter. However, he said, Gilmore is not aiming to catch the front-runners.
"Our challenge is to emerge as the (conservative) alternative, as the fourth front-runner," Josi said. "And to do that, frankly, we don't need $100 million."
TM & © THE POLITICO & POLITICO.COM, a division of Allbritton Communications Company
Fundraising Reports Not Likely To Pack Knockout in WH Race
By: Jeanne Cummings and Kenneth P. Vogel
March 29, 2007 08:48 AM EST
The much hyped first-quarter fundraising deadline for presidential candidates is unlikely to fundamentally scramble the leader board of either party, an outcome that will surely increase pressure on them to keep up the pace in the next quarter.
Fear of being caught by surprise by a competitor and knocked out of the top tier has driven all the campaigns into a frenzied money-raising mode. Fundraising events are scheduled right up to Saturday's midnight deadline.
The tallies for the first three months of this year, due to the Federal Election Commission by April 15, are likely to set a first-quarter fundraising record. And the presidential campaign is expected to be the nation's first $1 billion race.
"Everybody's going to have a decent quarter," predicted Fred Baron, finance chairman for Democratic hopeful John Edwards.
So while there may be some reordering of the top fields, it appears as though a knockout punch is not in the offing. Democrats Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama and Edwards and Republicans John McCain, Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney are the front-runners going into Saturday's deadline and expected to remain after it, even if one falls short in the expectations game.
That could mean the broader impact of the first-quarter reports will be twofold: Elevating the importance of second-quarter fundraising, when the front-runners must show they can maintain momentum, and providing a pecking order to the second-tier candidates who are trying to cling to fourth place and a chance to break through later.
Republicans Fear 2008 Meltdown
Hispanics Go To 'War' With PBS
GOP Sets Sights on Recapturing Bay Area Seat
"The candidates now are generally gathering donations from core supporters and pre-identified donors," said Anthony J. Corrado Jr., a campaign finance expert at Colby College in Maine. "In the second quarter, we will see who is moving beyond their base and building a national fundraising base."
The primary reason for this cycle's heated first-quarter pace is Edwards' surprising showing in 2003, when he outraised Democratic front-runner John F. Kerry and catapulted to the top of the primary field.
But later quarters also have a history of reshaping primary contests. In 1999, George W. Bush raised $29.5 million between April and July 1 when he was governor of Texas, and within weeks, lesser-funded candidates began dropping out of the GOP race. In 2003, Howard Dean pulled in $15 million in the third quarter, dramatically reshaping the primary's leading candidate roster and elevating the war in Iraq as an issue.
Republican Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor, is trying to emerge as his party's candidate of choice for conservatives much as Dean captured the Democrat's liberal wing. "The debates are going to really start showing what the candidates are about and, on those nights, we're not going to be wearing name tags with how much money we raised," Huckabee said.
Even so, in these final hours of the first quarter, the candidates are still racing for last-minute donations.
Huckabee will hold a Washington fundraiser Thursday night headlined by Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska). Clinton and Obama, as well as Romney, will close the quarter with events in Florida. Edwards continues a tour through West Virginia, Indiana and Ohio before winding up at a Saturday fundraising event in home state North Carolina.
Candidates hoping to become "tier jumpers" are also working the circuit and many have the ability to record their own eye-catching numbers in the first quarter. And former FEC chairman Michael E. Toner says that could draw fresh attention from the news media and donors "and suddenly you have to treat them like they're in the top tier."
Much attention will focus on Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn.), who ended the year with nearly $5 million in his campaign account that can be transferred to his presidential coffers. He also can tap his wealthy hometown constituents and others in nearby New York. His ascendance to chairman of the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee provides an advantage by bringing him into regular contact with deep-pocketed lobbyists and executives.
New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a Cabinet secretary in the Clinton administration, has a history of generating cash. He raised $14 million for his reelection campaign last year. He also has a national fundraising network cultivated during his leadership of the Democratic Governors Association and the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
His campaign manager, Dave Contarino, says Richardson will have a "respectable" first quarter total. But his primary focus will be on the early primary states, particularly nearby Nevada.
"We believe that the governor has a lot of attributes that Westerners like and that the voters in Nevada will like. We're going to be expected to show something in Nevada, but that doesn't change the fact that in Iowa, where I realize that the press has zero expectations for the governor, and maybe New Hampshire, where they have zero plus one, we expect our candidate to do quite well," Contarino said. He added: "If we can show momentum and start to take off, then the money will follow."
Similar strategies are being adopted on the Republican side. Former Wisconsin governor Tommy G. Thompson, who served in the Bush Cabinet, raised $6.5 million for his last gubernatorial campaign in 1998, giving him a home state base to tap. On the presidential field, he is banking on a good showing in the Aug. 11 straw poll in Iowa to elevate his candidacy later in the cycle, says spokesman Tony Jewell.
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) has also been quietly working Iowa, hoping his deep roots in the agriculture community and long-standing ties to the conservative wing of the GOP will give him momentum. But he's got competition for the conservative moniker from Huckabee and former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore.
Gilmore did not hold his first fundraiser until Monday, a week before the end of the first quarter. His campaign consultant, Christian Josi, said Gilmore raised $200,000 and will pick up the fundraising pace in the second quarter. However, he said, Gilmore is not aiming to catch the front-runners.
"Our challenge is to emerge as the (conservative) alternative, as the fourth front-runner," Josi said. "And to do that, frankly, we don't need $100 million."
TM & © THE POLITICO & POLITICO.COM, a division of Allbritton Communications Company
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
Fred Thompson
(this from the Washington Post. personally, i find all this chatter about thompson interesting. is he viable? obviously that decision is up to our primary voters but the larger discussion is the fact that the current TN governor phil bredesen will be term-limited out in the next election in which case bill frist will surely want to toss his hat in. if he doesn't, then maybe it's fred thompson. either way, both men are "power players" in tennessee and what better way to cement your reputation and build chatter around your future gubernatorial run then to have the national media hunt you down for POTUS in '08?
i'm just sayin'...something to think about...)
Fred Thompson: Man About Town
That Fred Thompson really gets around!
After having lunch Monday at the Mayflower hotel restaurant with Republican Party master strategist Ed Gillespie, the actor and former Tennessee senator met for three hours Tuesday at the same location with former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, also of Tennessee.
The back-to-back meetings underscore just how serious Thompson is about mulling a run for the presidency. And who wouldn't run after managing to place third among GOP presidential candidates without even lifting a finger? Click here to see the new USA Today/Gallup poll, which has Thompson - an undeclared potential candidate - ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and others, trailing only former New York City Mayor Rudy Guiliani and Arizona Sen. John McCain.
Eric Euland, a former top aide to Frist when he was Senate majority leader, confirmed that Thompson sought Frist's guidance this week.
"Sen. Frist has been talking to lots of old friends whenever he is in town, including Sen. Thompson, whose common-sense conservative credentials are part of the national conversation Republicans are having now about the 2008 race as they examine the field and the positions of various folks ready to carry the party's banner forward to keep taxes low, bring spending under control, see continued economic growth and new jobs created, respect life and succeed in the war on terror."
A Frist confidant familiar with the meeting between Thompson and Frist said he thought Thompson was "deadly serious" about learning as much as he could from Frist, who had considered a run for president himself and who, as the former top Republican in the Senate, is a proven fundraiser and has a Rolodex full of donors' names.
The source, who asked not to be identified because he was discussing sensitive political matters, said the two former Volunteer State senators had a "good conversation" and now consider themselves "friends," despite some tension in the past when they served together in the Senate, where Thompson, a recognizable face from television and movies, naturally got more media attention that Frist, a no-name heart surgeon.
A close Thompson confidant, meanwhile, told The Sleuth that Thompson has "the luxury of sitting back and waiting" before jumping in the '08 waters. And while the former senator has been "bombarded" with requests to appear on TV shows to discuss his potential candidacy, the source said, he's going to "wait and see how things develop."
Former Tennessee GOP Sen. Howard Baker, who is urging Thompson to run, feels that with no clear frontrunner in the GOP primary field, and with Thompson's name and face recognition, he would be a viable contender, according to the Thompson confidant.
"But if we're wrong and McCain or Guiliani jumps ahead and is really rolling along, [Thompson] probably won't get in at all," the source said.
Michael Madigan , a partner at the law firm Akin Gump who served as chief counsel to Thompson in the Senate, said he didn't know about Thompson's meeting with Frist and couldn't comment on if or when Thompson might enter the presidential race.
He did, however, say that Thompson is "giving thoughtful and serious consideration" to running and that "Fred is unique in that he has both the leadership and charisma to inspire people and the intellectual goods to back it up."
i'm just sayin'...something to think about...)
Fred Thompson: Man About Town
That Fred Thompson really gets around!
After having lunch Monday at the Mayflower hotel restaurant with Republican Party master strategist Ed Gillespie, the actor and former Tennessee senator met for three hours Tuesday at the same location with former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, also of Tennessee.
The back-to-back meetings underscore just how serious Thompson is about mulling a run for the presidency. And who wouldn't run after managing to place third among GOP presidential candidates without even lifting a finger? Click here to see the new USA Today/Gallup poll, which has Thompson - an undeclared potential candidate - ahead of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and others, trailing only former New York City Mayor Rudy Guiliani and Arizona Sen. John McCain.
Eric Euland, a former top aide to Frist when he was Senate majority leader, confirmed that Thompson sought Frist's guidance this week.
"Sen. Frist has been talking to lots of old friends whenever he is in town, including Sen. Thompson, whose common-sense conservative credentials are part of the national conversation Republicans are having now about the 2008 race as they examine the field and the positions of various folks ready to carry the party's banner forward to keep taxes low, bring spending under control, see continued economic growth and new jobs created, respect life and succeed in the war on terror."
A Frist confidant familiar with the meeting between Thompson and Frist said he thought Thompson was "deadly serious" about learning as much as he could from Frist, who had considered a run for president himself and who, as the former top Republican in the Senate, is a proven fundraiser and has a Rolodex full of donors' names.
The source, who asked not to be identified because he was discussing sensitive political matters, said the two former Volunteer State senators had a "good conversation" and now consider themselves "friends," despite some tension in the past when they served together in the Senate, where Thompson, a recognizable face from television and movies, naturally got more media attention that Frist, a no-name heart surgeon.
A close Thompson confidant, meanwhile, told The Sleuth that Thompson has "the luxury of sitting back and waiting" before jumping in the '08 waters. And while the former senator has been "bombarded" with requests to appear on TV shows to discuss his potential candidacy, the source said, he's going to "wait and see how things develop."
Former Tennessee GOP Sen. Howard Baker, who is urging Thompson to run, feels that with no clear frontrunner in the GOP primary field, and with Thompson's name and face recognition, he would be a viable contender, according to the Thompson confidant.
"But if we're wrong and McCain or Guiliani jumps ahead and is really rolling along, [Thompson] probably won't get in at all," the source said.
Michael Madigan , a partner at the law firm Akin Gump who served as chief counsel to Thompson in the Senate, said he didn't know about Thompson's meeting with Frist and couldn't comment on if or when Thompson might enter the presidential race.
He did, however, say that Thompson is "giving thoughtful and serious consideration" to running and that "Fred is unique in that he has both the leadership and charisma to inspire people and the intellectual goods to back it up."
Sunday, March 25, 2007
Dems perspective: "More Than You Wanted to Know About Health Care"
(i know i've been a slacker about posting but there has been so much going on. i got a promotion, yeah, but back to the foremost domestic issue: healthcare. this is what the dems have to say about that...from the politico)
More Than You Wanted to Know About Health Care
By: Roger Simon
March 24, 2007 10:16 PM EST
LAS VEGAS -- Because you did not want to spend your Saturday sitting in a room for three hours listening to Democratic presidential candidates tell you how they are going to provide universal health care for America, Politico did it for you.
The candidates appeared in a forum sponsored by the Service Employees International Union and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. It was moderated by Karen Tumulty of Time magazine.
Here are the highlights in the order that the candidates appeared:
JOHN EDWARDS
The former senator from North Carolina got a tough first question from Tumulty. How could he do two “all-consuming” things at once: Both run for president and deal with his wife’s incurable cancer?
“We take our responsibility to serve our country very seriously,” Edwards, whose wife attended the forum with him, replied. “We want to serve. Both of us. Which is why we made the decision to go forward.”
Then he added: “I think we are getting far too much credit when you look at all the millions of women struggling with what Elizabeth has without her great health care coverage. A lot of women with exactly the same diagnosis as Elizabeth had to get up the next morning and go to work.”
What is his plan?
“I would cover all Americans. There would be shared responsibilities: Employers must cover their employees or pay into a fund. The government would create health care markets and you could choose your health care provider. Some would be private and some would be Medicare-plus -- kind of single-payer (i.e. government-run) plan. Everyone in America will be required by law to be covered by a health care plan.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Edwards said his plan will cost $90 billion to $120 billion per year in government costs. The money would come from tax increases, though he prefers the phrase “additional sources of revenue.”
“I do not believe you can have universal health care without finding additional sources of revenue,” he said. “You don’t get universal health care for free."
When will we get it?
In his first term.
Most intriguing line:
“Some candidates say they will provide health care, improve the environment, end poverty, and eliminate the federal deficit. They probably have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you, too. America needs a president who is honest and honesty starts right here.”
BILL RICHARDSON
The governor of New Mexico said, “We spend $2 trillion a year on health care and 31 percent of that is spent on bureaucracy and red tape. We must devise a strategy that, first of all, does not create any more bureaucracy.”
What is his plan?
All Americans should be able to purchase the same coverage as members of Congress and the president. Americans 55 and over should be able to purchase their coverage through Medicare. Veterans would have access to health care “anywhere they want, anytime they want.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Richardson did not give a cost. As to paying for it, he said: “Get out of Iraq and put the $400 billion we are spending there into human needs. Reduce and eliminate inefficiencies (in the health care system). This is a plan that could be paid for without any new taxes."
When will we get it?
“With a Democratic president and a stronger Democratic Congress, the plan I outlined will be achieved in my first year as president.”
Most intriguing line:
“I just signed a statewide smoking ban in New Mexico (banning smoking in bars, restaurants, stores, and workplaces). I would do that as president.”
BARACK OBAMA
The junior senator from Illinois admitted he does not yet have a health care plan but said he will announce one in the next few months.
“The basic principles,” he said, “are everybody is in it, there has to be more money for prevention, and some form of pooling of costs and risks. If we have another forum in a few months and my plan is still not on my Web site, I will be in trouble.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Obama did not mention cost, but said, “I think we are going to have to put some money in on the front end. I think we can make the system more efficient and get a lot of money out of the system. I haven’t foreclosed on needing additional revenues, but we should not underestimate the amount of money that can be saved.”
When will we get it?
He didn’t say.
Most intriguing line:
“Every four years, somebody trots out a health care plan. The question is do we have the political will and sense of urgency to actually get it done. I want to be held accountable to get it done.”
HILLARY CLINTON
The junior senator from New York said, “A lot of people like what they have now. We don’t want people feeling that government will come in and tell me what to do and what doctor I want to go to. We will give people a choice. We have to look at that as a framework.”
What is her plan?
“I am in favor of universal health care coverage that brings in the 47 million who are uninsured and that begins to guarantee coverage to those who already have insurance. Insurance companies spend a lot of money trying to avoid insuring you and if they insure you, they try to avoid paying for the health care you need. Every health insurance company will have to insure everybody with no exclusions for pre-existing conditions.”
How much will it cost and how will she pay for it?
She did not give the cost. She said: “There will be some investments, but when I talk about how much money we need to spend, I cannot see us spending more money as a national expenditure without modernizing, ending discrimination, and promoting wellness. I don’t think we should say we will put more money into a system that is broken.”
When will we get it?
At a forum in Carson City, Nev., last month, Clinton said: “President Kennedy said he wanted a man on the moon by the end of the decade. I want universal health care coverage by the end of my second term.”
On Saturday, in Las Vegas, she was less clear as to her timetable. “I think we are all going to start as soon as possible,” she said. “Make no mistake, this will be a series of steps.”
Most intriguing line:
“I vaguely remember being young.”
CHRIS DODD
The senior senator from Connecticut reminded the audience that the United States “ranks 26th in life expectancy and 28th in infant mortality, yet we account for more than 50 percent of the money spent worldwide on health care.”
What is his plan?
Dodd said his plan has four principles: universality, increased emphasis on prevention, expanding Medicare and Medicaid, and increasing the use of modern technology to lower health care costs.
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
He did not say how much it will cost. He did say, “We can pay for it if we can get rid of permanent tax cuts for the top one percent of earners and get rid of the Iraq war, which is costing us $2 billion a week.”
When will it happen?
“I am impatient. I will make this the first order of business in a Dodd administration. I would want to see it far sooner than four or eight years.”
Most intriguing line:
“My house is a Petri dish. One of my children has strep throat and another has some kind of adenoidal infection.”
DENNIS KUCINICH
The congressman from Ohio wants a single-payer health care system. He didn’t deal with costs or say when it would be achieved. But he did say he would fight for it no matter what the odds.
“What if Lincoln had decided there was just too much resistance to emancipation?” he said. “Think if suffragettes said there was too much resistance to women voting. Think if Martin Luther King had said we can only push so far for civil rights.”
Most intriguing line
“You need a president who didn’t fall out of a Christmas tree. You need a president who doesn’t have a key in the back being wound up by special interests.”
MIKE GRAVEL
The former senator from Alaska wants a single-payer plan that uses vouchers issued to every American. But he is really running for president to promote a plan for direct democracy that would allow citizens to enact laws without having to rely on Congress.
Yet, when asked to explain how that would work, Gravel said: “I don’t want to take the time to go through the whole process. It is a national ballot initiative. It is revolutionary. It is out of the box.”
Most intriguing line:
“You can’t have everything you want. You can’t have a burp and run for the doctor.”
More Than You Wanted to Know About Health Care
By: Roger Simon
March 24, 2007 10:16 PM EST
LAS VEGAS -- Because you did not want to spend your Saturday sitting in a room for three hours listening to Democratic presidential candidates tell you how they are going to provide universal health care for America, Politico did it for you.
The candidates appeared in a forum sponsored by the Service Employees International Union and the Center for American Progress Action Fund. It was moderated by Karen Tumulty of Time magazine.
Here are the highlights in the order that the candidates appeared:
JOHN EDWARDS
The former senator from North Carolina got a tough first question from Tumulty. How could he do two “all-consuming” things at once: Both run for president and deal with his wife’s incurable cancer?
“We take our responsibility to serve our country very seriously,” Edwards, whose wife attended the forum with him, replied. “We want to serve. Both of us. Which is why we made the decision to go forward.”
Then he added: “I think we are getting far too much credit when you look at all the millions of women struggling with what Elizabeth has without her great health care coverage. A lot of women with exactly the same diagnosis as Elizabeth had to get up the next morning and go to work.”
What is his plan?
“I would cover all Americans. There would be shared responsibilities: Employers must cover their employees or pay into a fund. The government would create health care markets and you could choose your health care provider. Some would be private and some would be Medicare-plus -- kind of single-payer (i.e. government-run) plan. Everyone in America will be required by law to be covered by a health care plan.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Edwards said his plan will cost $90 billion to $120 billion per year in government costs. The money would come from tax increases, though he prefers the phrase “additional sources of revenue.”
“I do not believe you can have universal health care without finding additional sources of revenue,” he said. “You don’t get universal health care for free."
When will we get it?
In his first term.
Most intriguing line:
“Some candidates say they will provide health care, improve the environment, end poverty, and eliminate the federal deficit. They probably have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you, too. America needs a president who is honest and honesty starts right here.”
BILL RICHARDSON
The governor of New Mexico said, “We spend $2 trillion a year on health care and 31 percent of that is spent on bureaucracy and red tape. We must devise a strategy that, first of all, does not create any more bureaucracy.”
What is his plan?
All Americans should be able to purchase the same coverage as members of Congress and the president. Americans 55 and over should be able to purchase their coverage through Medicare. Veterans would have access to health care “anywhere they want, anytime they want.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Richardson did not give a cost. As to paying for it, he said: “Get out of Iraq and put the $400 billion we are spending there into human needs. Reduce and eliminate inefficiencies (in the health care system). This is a plan that could be paid for without any new taxes."
When will we get it?
“With a Democratic president and a stronger Democratic Congress, the plan I outlined will be achieved in my first year as president.”
Most intriguing line:
“I just signed a statewide smoking ban in New Mexico (banning smoking in bars, restaurants, stores, and workplaces). I would do that as president.”
BARACK OBAMA
The junior senator from Illinois admitted he does not yet have a health care plan but said he will announce one in the next few months.
“The basic principles,” he said, “are everybody is in it, there has to be more money for prevention, and some form of pooling of costs and risks. If we have another forum in a few months and my plan is still not on my Web site, I will be in trouble.”
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
Obama did not mention cost, but said, “I think we are going to have to put some money in on the front end. I think we can make the system more efficient and get a lot of money out of the system. I haven’t foreclosed on needing additional revenues, but we should not underestimate the amount of money that can be saved.”
When will we get it?
He didn’t say.
Most intriguing line:
“Every four years, somebody trots out a health care plan. The question is do we have the political will and sense of urgency to actually get it done. I want to be held accountable to get it done.”
HILLARY CLINTON
The junior senator from New York said, “A lot of people like what they have now. We don’t want people feeling that government will come in and tell me what to do and what doctor I want to go to. We will give people a choice. We have to look at that as a framework.”
What is her plan?
“I am in favor of universal health care coverage that brings in the 47 million who are uninsured and that begins to guarantee coverage to those who already have insurance. Insurance companies spend a lot of money trying to avoid insuring you and if they insure you, they try to avoid paying for the health care you need. Every health insurance company will have to insure everybody with no exclusions for pre-existing conditions.”
How much will it cost and how will she pay for it?
She did not give the cost. She said: “There will be some investments, but when I talk about how much money we need to spend, I cannot see us spending more money as a national expenditure without modernizing, ending discrimination, and promoting wellness. I don’t think we should say we will put more money into a system that is broken.”
When will we get it?
At a forum in Carson City, Nev., last month, Clinton said: “President Kennedy said he wanted a man on the moon by the end of the decade. I want universal health care coverage by the end of my second term.”
On Saturday, in Las Vegas, she was less clear as to her timetable. “I think we are all going to start as soon as possible,” she said. “Make no mistake, this will be a series of steps.”
Most intriguing line:
“I vaguely remember being young.”
CHRIS DODD
The senior senator from Connecticut reminded the audience that the United States “ranks 26th in life expectancy and 28th in infant mortality, yet we account for more than 50 percent of the money spent worldwide on health care.”
What is his plan?
Dodd said his plan has four principles: universality, increased emphasis on prevention, expanding Medicare and Medicaid, and increasing the use of modern technology to lower health care costs.
How much will it cost and how will he pay for it?
He did not say how much it will cost. He did say, “We can pay for it if we can get rid of permanent tax cuts for the top one percent of earners and get rid of the Iraq war, which is costing us $2 billion a week.”
When will it happen?
“I am impatient. I will make this the first order of business in a Dodd administration. I would want to see it far sooner than four or eight years.”
Most intriguing line:
“My house is a Petri dish. One of my children has strep throat and another has some kind of adenoidal infection.”
DENNIS KUCINICH
The congressman from Ohio wants a single-payer health care system. He didn’t deal with costs or say when it would be achieved. But he did say he would fight for it no matter what the odds.
“What if Lincoln had decided there was just too much resistance to emancipation?” he said. “Think if suffragettes said there was too much resistance to women voting. Think if Martin Luther King had said we can only push so far for civil rights.”
Most intriguing line
“You need a president who didn’t fall out of a Christmas tree. You need a president who doesn’t have a key in the back being wound up by special interests.”
MIKE GRAVEL
The former senator from Alaska wants a single-payer plan that uses vouchers issued to every American. But he is really running for president to promote a plan for direct democracy that would allow citizens to enact laws without having to rely on Congress.
Yet, when asked to explain how that would work, Gravel said: “I don’t want to take the time to go through the whole process. It is a national ballot initiative. It is revolutionary. It is out of the box.”
Most intriguing line:
“You can’t have everything you want. You can’t have a burp and run for the doctor.”
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