Obama Has Big-Money Donors, Too

That's more than double the proportion from 2007: analysis

(NEWSER) - President Obama continues to be successful raising money through small donations—and this time around, he's outpacing his campaign from four years ago. Last year, almost half of the money raised by the president's re-election campaign came from donors who gave $200 or less in total, a new report from the Campaign Finance Institute shows. In 2007, by comparison, just 22% of the $96.7 million he raised came from donations of $200 or less. In total, Obama raised $56.7 million from small donors last year, compared to the $38.1 million small donors contributed to all of his Republican opponents combined. More»

There are plenty of reasons the president should be worried

(NEWSER) - Democrats, and many pundits, seem to believe that President Obama is rebounding, and will surely win re-election, but Jim Vandehei of Politico isn't buying it. Here's why he thinks the president should be sweating right now:

• The economy: The recent CBO report not only projected another trillion-dollar deficit, it predicted that unemployment will rise to 8.8% in the third quarter—something Obama's own advisers doubt he could recover from.

But still an impressive amount: Politico

(NEWSER) - The Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee raised a significant amount of funds in 2011—$222 million—but not quite enough to beat the Bush-Cheney amount from the same period eight years ago. In 2003, Bush's campaign and the RNC raised about $239 million, which Politico did not adjust for inflation. And the $68 million raised by Obama and the DNC in the fourth quarter was less than the $70.1 million raised the quarter prior. More»

And Newt Gingrich fights for money from anyone

(NEWSER) - Fundraising is the name of the game right now, and the Washington Post and New York Times today take a look at how the big-name contenders are faring.

• The Post checks in on the battle for the richest of the rich, and it's a Mitt Romney vs. Barack Obama affair. Thus far, Romney is wooing more one-percenters, with at least 42 billionaires contributing to his campaign; Obama has racked up 30 so far. Romney's most noteworthy supporters include Redskins owner Dan Snyder and publisher Sam Zell; in Obama's corner stand Progressive insurance company chairman Peter Lewis and Google's Eric Schmidt. Since big-money donors can give unlimited amounts to super PACs, the Post predicts that a billionaire will, in this cycle, top the current giving record: the $24 million George Soros spent in support of Kerry in 2004.

Many bundlers 'indistinguishable' from traditional lobbyists, finds NYT

(NEWSER) - President Obama’s campaign has pledged not to take money from lobbyists—but some of its biggest fundraisers don’t look much different. Fifteen of the president’s powerful “bundlers,” who donate to the campaign and seek others’ donations, have raised some $5 million for Obama; while none are registered lobbyists, they work in the lobbying field, the New York Times reports. That doesn’t look good for a president who has attacked K Street as a source of political corruption. More»