As US presidetial election draws close:
Big money flowing through 2012 presidential race
* Obama has had 69
fundraisers, each with ticket prices topping tens of thousands of
dollars
* Mitt Romney has held
105 donor events, in a frenzied race for money
US: Barack Obama may not like asking for money, but the hundreds of
people willing to pay upwards of $40,000 a pop to attend star-studded
fundraisers in his honor show there are plenty willing to reach deep
into their pockets on his behalf.
Since May, the president has gone to 69 fundraisers, each with ticket
prices topping tens of thousands of dollars. His opponent, Republican
Mitt Romney, has held 105 of the donor events, in a frenzied race for
money that has already pushed this year’s presidential campaign coffers
past $1.3 billion.
While the sum may seem staggering, the 2012 edition of the
presidential race shouldn’t cost significantly more than in 2008 since
the president didn’t have to finance a primary campaign to win the
Democratic nomination.
As of August 31, Barack Obama had raised $432 million, less than the
$746 million collected four years ago, according to figures filed with
the Federal Election Commission.
In comparison, Romney had raised $274 million, just below John
McCain’s haul of $288 million. But the numbers don’t stop there.
On top of the campaign fundraising efforts is the money raised by the
national Democratic and Republican parties -- $233 million and $283
million, respectively -- and independent partisan groups, or super PACs,
which have raised $36 million for Obama and $97 million for Romney.
And while Obama has not yet reached the staggering heights of his
2008 fundraising success, he remains the uncontested king of small-scale
donations: 37 percent of the checks sent to his campaign are made out
for less than $200.
His multimillionaire rival’s coffers count just 16 percent of their
take from small-scale donations, according to figures compiled by
opensecrets.org.
But the Republicans make up for the lag with an avalanche of money
from rich individuals, free to contribute unlimited sums to “friendly”
independent groups following recent changes to campaign finance
regulations.
Only half of the pro-Romney ads broadcast in September were paid for
by his campaign, according to Kantar Media/CMAG data with analysis by
the Wesleyan Media Project, a university research center that studies
political advertising expenditures.
The rest were paid for by organizations free to raise unlimited money
from rich individuals, corporations and unions, thanks to a 2010 Supreme
Court decision on campaign finance reform.
The Citizens United ruling said that corporations, unions and
individuals could make unlimited contributions to partisan political
groups, as long as the organizations were “independent” of the
candidates.
Two types of outside groups exist: Super PACs, which are required to
make public the names of their donors, and groups known by the legal
code 501(c)4 -- non-profits ostensibly operated exclusively for the
promotion of “social welfare” such as churches and environmental groups.
The latter do not have to reveal their donors, but can only use half
their expenditures for political activism -- though that limit is tough
to enforce.
So who sends checks to top Republican super PAC American Crossroads,
run by right-wing strategist Karl Rove, with a budget of around $300
million? At the top of the list, with a donation of $10 million, is
billionaire Harold Simmons, chief executive of the industrial group
Contran Corporation. Not far behind is Bob Perry, head of the
construction firm Perry Homes, with a $6 million check.
And the list goes on, with dozens of other conservative business
titans capable of doubling overnight the resources of their camp.
The Democrats, too, have their super PACs. Former Obama campaign
aides have launched Priorities USA Action -- though it has raised less
money than its Republican counterparts.
But the strongest impact will be seen in congressional races, where a
relatively small boost of just a few million dollars can completely a
race, said Michael Malbin, executive director of the Campaign Finance
Institute.
American Crossroads and its 501(c)4 partner “Crossroads GPS,” whose
donors remain secret, have dedicated half of their spending on local
races, in hopes of regaining a majority in Congress and blocking the
Obama agenda if he’s re-elected.
AFP |