For '08, big money cuts both ways

Obama's stunning presidential fundraising prowess draws scrutiny in New Hampshire.

from the April 6, 2007 edition

POLITICKING: A woman waits in Peterborough, N.H., so Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama (center) can autograph her copy of his recent book.

MICHAEL MOORE/THE KEENE SENTINEL/AP

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PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - When Barack Obama appeared here Tuesday for a town-hall-style discussion on healthcare, the Illinois Democrat had yet to announce his stunning fundraising totals for the first quarter of 2007.

But the political world had a hunch the numbers would be huge – perhaps even rivaling those of his chief opponent for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York. And they did: Senator Obama raised $25 million to her $26 million. The race to top the 2008 Democratic ticket is wide open.

For some New Hampshire voters, though, the big bucks seem more a cause of concern than a reason for excitement. At the healthcare forum, one woman asked Obama if he would be, in essence, a captive of his donors. The senator then hinted at what could be a central challenge of his campaign going forward: maintaining that sense of freshness and "outsider-ness," while playing the insider game of big-league fundraising essential to any successful presidential bid.

"Listen, I would love not to have to raise money so I could spend all my time in town-hall meetings," Obama told voters at the event hosted by the Portsmouth Herald.

He defended himself by saying that throughout his political career, he had sought to limit the influence of money in politics. But, he added, fundraising was a game he had to play to be competitive.

Obama also could have pointed out that a significant portion of his fundraising has come from small donors – those contributing at the $25 and $100 levels, far short of the $4,600 maximum allowed per donor for the primary and general elections combined. The next day, the Obama campaign reported donations from 100,000 people, versus 50,000 contributors for Senator Clinton.

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