Big donors a major force in Obama campaign: Report

New York, Aug 5 (PTI) Democratic presidential nominee
Barack Obama's effort to distance himself from the "influence
of money on politics" has not materialised as big donors are a
major force in his successful campaign which has raised a
record U.S.D. 340 million.

The 47-year-old Senator from Illonis often highlights the
campaign contributions of U.S.D. 200 or less that have
amounted to fully half of the U.S.D. 340 million he has
collected so far in his race for the White House.

But records show that one-third of his haul has come from
donations of U.S.D. 1,000 or more: a total of U.S.D. 112
million, more than his Republican rival, Senator John McCain,
or Senator Hillary Clinton, his opponent in the Democratic
primaries, raised in contributions of that size, the New York
Times reported Wednesday.

An analysis of campaign finance records shows that about
two-thirds of Obama's bundlers are concentrated in four
major industries: law, securities and investments, real estate
and entertainment, the Times said.

"Many of the bundlers come from industries with critical
interests in Washington. Nearly three dozen of the bundlers
have raised more than U.S.D. 500,000 each, including more than
a half-dozen who have passed the U.S.D. 1 million mark and one
or two who have exceeded U.S.D. 2 million," it said.

Obama has pledged not to accept donations from lobbyists
or political action committees registered with the federal
government.

The Obama fund-raising operation is meticulously
organised. Bundlers are assigned tracking numbers, and the
finance staff sends them quarterly reminders of how they are
doing in meeting their goals.

He tapped into well-connected people in Chicago prior to
the 2004 Senate race, and once elected, set out across the
country starting to cultivate some of his party's most
influential money collectors.

He also courted them with the savvy of a veteran
politician, through phone calls, meals and one-on-one
meetings; he wrote thank-you cards and remembered birthdays;
he sent them autographed copies of his book and doted on their
children, the paper said.

Given his decision not to accept public financing, Obama
is counting on his bundlers to help him raise U.S.D. 300
million for his general election campaign and another U.S.D.
180 million for the Democratic National Committee, it said.

"It's fairly clear that this is being packaged as an
extraordinary new kind of fund-raising, and the Internet is a
new and powerful part of it," said Michael J Malbin,
executive director of the Campaign Finance Institute. "But
it's also clear that many of the old donors are still there
and important."