by Mark Silva

"Going into battle one more time,'' Sen. John McCain calls it.

That's his way of framing his relatively remote-control work for the reelection of Sen. Saxby Chambliss of Georgia, the Republican forced into a runoff election, this coming Tuesday, with Democrat Jim Martin.

Today, that means raising money.

"Today, I'm asking you to go into battle one more time for our party,'' the senior senator from Arizona and failed Republican nominee for president this year, writes in an email appeal to supporters. Both McCain and running mate Sarah Palin have gone to Georgia to help Chambliss, and while President-elect Barack Obama has not personally campaigned there since his own election victory, his standing campaign organization in Georgia has been pressed into service for the Democrat's campaign.

"The eyes of the country and the world will be on the state of Georgia next Tuesday,'' McCain writes. "If we lose, the Senate Democrats could reach 60 seats in the U.S. Senate. This would give them the power to enact an agenda out of touch with our values and beliefs and the ability to confirm activist judges and liberal administration appointees with little to no open debate.

"As Americans we must continue fighting for our shared values. We must fight for our men and women in uniform, we must fight for energy independence, we must fight to create better jobs and a better economy and we must fight to keep our taxes low.

"Our party is joining together to stop the liberals from railroading their misguided tax hikes and military funding cuts through the U.S. Senate.''

by Mark Silva

The idea that President-elect Barack Obama's runaway record campaign fundraising was driven by small donors turns out to be, well, an idea.

A new analysis of the more than $600 million that Obama raised shows that about one quarter of it came from people giving less than $200. About the same percentage - 25 percent - that President Bush collected in his own record-breaking reelection campaign fundraising in 2004.

Our colleague at the Ticket, Andrew Malcolm, cites a study of the nonpartisan Campaign Finance Institute.

"The myth is that money from small donors dominated Barack Obama's finances," CFI's executive director Michael Malbin says. "The reality of Obama's fundraising was impressive, but the reality does not match the myth."

Only 26 percent of Obama's contributions through August and only 24 percent through Oct. 15 came from people whose total donations added up to less than $200, with Malcolm emphasizing "the key word there being 'total."

A small donor might be someone who scraped together $199, he notes, but not someone who donated $199 to the Obama campaign several times, perhaps totaling close to the $4,600 legal limit for the primary and general elections."In aggregate, that would vault him/her out of the small donor category that was so useful to the political campaign's public relations campaign portraying the donor base as about two times as broad as it really was.''

The analysis shows that Obama actually received 80 percent more money from large donors (those giving $1,000 or more total) than from small donors.

The $119 million raised by genuine small donors through the Democratic National Convention is "impressive,'' Malcolm notes, but perhaps "not as impressive'' as the $210 million raised by bundlers and large donors by that point.

"After a more thorough analysis of data from the Federal Election Commission (FEC)," the CFI study says, "it has become clear that repeaters and large donors were even more important for Obama than we or other analysts had fully appreciated."

by Aamer Madhani

In the leadup to Sen. Barack Obama's acceptance speech last night, a series of plain-spoken Americans testified about their support of the Democratic nominee.

It was a nice show of average Americans explaining their passion for the campaign.

Without a doubt the supporter who had the biggest laugh line was Barney Smith, a displaced manufacturing worker from Marion, Ind., who took a shot at the brokerage firm Smith Barney.

Smith Barney had its image tarnished for its financing of Enron Corp., the Houston-based energy company which had an epic collapse due to dodgy accounting procedures. The financial collapse, ultimately, led to the ruin of many blue collar workers' pension funds which were invested in what was considered a blue chip company.

"We need a president who puts Barney Smith before Smith Barney," Smith said.

Nice shot, Barney.

But for the record, it's probably worth noting that both Obama and Sen. John McCain have received a tidy sum in campaign donations from employees of Citigroup, the $1 trillion financial services group that Smith Barney is part of.

Obama received more than $408,000 in contributions from Citigroup employees and families in 2008 while McCain received more than $268,000 this year, according to OpenSecrets.org, a campaign finance web site run by the Center for Responsive Politics.

by Mark Silva

Think of federal campaign fundraising disclosure as No Bundler Left Behind.

And generally, in the analysis of the Los Angeles Times' Dan Morain, Republican John McCain gets a higher grade on the transparency of his disclosure than Democrat Barack Obama does.

Yet McCain's reports omit the name of a certain past bundler, "Claytie'' Williams of Texas, whose tasteless humor about sexual assault during a 1990 campaign against the legendary Ann Richards made him a persona non grata during this campaign cycle.

McCain is getting "huzzahs for fundraising transparency,'' Morain notes at L.A.'s Top of the Ticket. The Republican's own Web-site names, and lists the occupations of, supporters raising more than $50,000 for McCain.

Of course, that comes with a cost, Morain notes: "By listing bundlers' occupations, he allows Democratic rivals to slam him for raising money from certain segments, such as, say, the D.C. lobbying corps.''

Obama also reports his big bunders, Morain observers, "But the candidate who urges transparency in all things government doesn't disclose bundlers' occupations or employers.'' Camp Obama suggests that people can go to the Federal Elections Commission Web-site for further information.

. Yet, McCain's disclosure has a certain currency to it - meaning they list the names of active bundlers. Unlike Texas oilman Clayton "Claytie" Williams, whose questionable sense of humor has caused him considerable trouble ( he had, in 1990, likened rape to bad weather, suggesting that one need only "relax and enjoy it.'')

Williiams is said to have raised $300,000 for McCain early in the campaign. But in June, after the Arizona senator had sewn up the nomination, McCain canceled a fundraiser that Williams planned.

McCain spokesman Brian Rogers offered this explanation for the Ticket: "We list folks who are currently raising money for the campaign. Mr. Williams is not."

by Mark Silva

Sen. John McCain's call for off-shore oil-drilling may not have caught on in Congress, where Republicans view it as a way to bolster the world's oil supply and lower gasoline prices and Democrats tend to side with environmentalists on the sanctity of the Outer-Continental Shelf.

But it has caught on with the oil industry, whose executives contributed $1.1 million to McCain's presidential campaign last month, the Washington Post reports today on an independent watchdog group's study of the McCain campaign's fundraising.

Three quarters of McCain's oil haul followed the senior senator from Arizona's call for an end to the long-standing congressional moratorium on off-shore oil-drilling, the Post notes. And that $1.1 million take from Big Oil executives in June outstrips the industry's giving before that: $208,000 in May, $283,000 in April, $116,000 in March, by the Post's count.

McCain isn't the only one pushing for off-shore drilling. President has lifted an executive order banning it, which his father had signed, as a measure of his commitment to the cause. McCain has taken the recent drop in the price of oil on the world market as an indicator of the success of that symbolic move by Bush, who maintains that the world market will respond to U.S. initiatives.

"We have untapped oil reserves of at least 21 billion barrels in the United States,'' McCain had said in June, when he called for an end to the moratorium. "But a broad federal moratorium stands in the way of energy exploration and production. It is time for the federal government to lift these restrictions."

The Post notes that McCain made this address before "heading to Texas for a series of fundraisers with energy industry executives.'' The day after the speech, the Post has found, McCain raised $1.3 million at a closed-door luncheon and reception at the San Antonio Country Club.

""The timing was significant," David Donnelly, national campaigns director for the Public Campaign Action Fund. The nonpartisan campaign finance reform group -- whose Web-site does appear to target Republicans in hts bid for "clean money' -- conducted the analysis of McCain's oil industry contributions, the Post reports today. "This is a case study of how a candidate can change a policy position in the interest of raising money."

Brian Rogers, a McCain campaign spokesman, told the newspaper that any suggestion that McCain weighed fundraising into his political calculus on the oil-drilling policy is "completely absurd." And, of course, McCain fought hard for the McCain-Feingold bill that ended unlimited donations of "soft money'' to the political parties.(and also doubled what individuals, such as executives of any industry, could donate to federal candidates.)

by Mark Silva

Sen. Barack Obama's campaign raised $52 million in June, his campaign manager said Thursday morning - not quite a record for the high-flying campaign, but close to it. The campaign had raised $55 million in February, during the Democratic primaries.

But it's still more than twice what Republican rival Sen. John McCain raised during June -- $22 million.

Yet the Republican National Committee, which is backing the party's presidential candidate with its own resources, also had nearly $68 million in the bank - a combined treasury which the Obama campaign was mindful about in reporting its own June haul.

"Supporters like you helped raise $52 million,'' campaign manager David Plouffe said in an e-mail to campaign supporters this morning. "And together with the DNC, we now have nearly $72 million in the bank. That's a very strong financial position to be in. ''

Yes it is - with the candidates running close in the midsummer polls - and a record presidential fundraising year unfolding.

"The McCain campaign and the Republican National Committee finished June with nearly $100 million in the bank,'' Plouffe said Thursday, asking for yet more money in a repeat appeal to small donors who are being tapped many times. "We can't stop now. It's going to take everything we've got to defeat John McCain and his allies in November. ''

In this battle of big bucks, the Obama campaign closes with a modest request that is emblematic of the widespread, small-donor appeal that it has made from the start. Plouffe asks: "Can you make a donation of $5 now to strengthen our movement for change?"

by Jim Tankersley

Money isn't everything in a House race, but it can be a good thermometer for which races - and which candidates - are hottest. So Tuesday was a "heat check" of sorts for candidates in a half-dozen Illinois congressional races analysts expect to be most competitive this fall.

Quick takeaway: The 10th and 11th congressional districts are as hot as advertised. The 8th, maybe not as much.

Campaign finance reports due Tuesday show fiery races in a pair of suburban, Republican-held seats. In the 10th, incumbent Mark Kirk is one of a handful of Republicans nationwide to represent districts carried by Democrat John Kerry in the 2004 presidential race. He raised about $900,000 for the quarter ending June 30, per the Associated Press; Democratic challenger Dan Seals raised about $645,000. Kirk ended the quarter with about $2.85 million on hand, compared to about $1.75 for Seals.

In the 11th, where Republican Jerry Weller is retiring, both candidates turned in a claim to strength. Republican Marty Ozinga raised more than $800,000 in his first quarter in the race. Democrat Debbie Halovorson raised more than $365,000, but she closed the quarter ahead in cash-on-hand, with more than $900,000 to Ozinga's $670,000.

Democrat Melissa Bean has a far wider cash advantage in her re-election bid in the suburban 8th, which Republicans call their best pick-up opportunity in Illinois. She outraised GOP opponent Steve Greenberg by nearly $200,000 for the quarter and ended June with more than $1.5 million in the bank. Greenberg reported about $100,000 on hand.

by John McCormick and Mark Silva and updated

Comes word tonight that Sen. Barack Obama is ready to help Sen. Hillary Clinton clear some $10 million in debt owed to vendors who served her campaign for president.

In advance of two joint appearances later this week that seek to demonstrate party unity, Obama has asked his top fundraisers to do what they can to help eliminate her campaign debt, the Tribune has confirmed.

A Democratic source with knowledge of the situation said Obama instructed members of his national finance committee during a conference call today to help Clinton with some of the $10 million she owes to vendors.

The former first lady, who exited the Democratic contest on June 7, ended May with $22.5 million in debt, more than half of it from personal loans to her campaign.

Obama and Clinton are preparing to assemble many of Clinton's own best fundraisers Thursday evening in Washington to implore them to put their shoulders to the wheel of Obama's fundraising now that he has clinched the Democratic presidential nomination that Clinton sought for so long.

The two are to appear together Friday in Unity, N.H., a tiny town of fewer than 2,000 people where both Clinton and Obama drew the exact same number of votes in their primary contest.

Obama already is on a course to breaking all fundraisng records in his bid for the White House, and his contributors, who provided as much as $55 million a month for his primary campaign at the height of the winter battle and $22 million just last month, could go a long way toward helping Clinton repay her debts to those who served her campaign.

by Andrew Malcolm

Led by chairman Mike Duncan, the Republican National Committee ended May with 13 times more money in the bank than its Democratic counterpart, and raised five times as much money in the same time frame.

As Los Angeles Times' Top of the Ticket notes, the paper's finance guru Dan Morain points out, the sums are significant as presumptive Republican nominee Sen. John McCain squares off against the far more richly-funded Sen. Barack Obama for the last 136 days of the general election campaign.

Based on the numbers so far, the Republican Party appears poised to act as the financial equalizer in the fall campaign. The RNC disclosed that it ended May with $53.5 million in the bank, compared to $3.9 million for the Democratic National Committee, which is headed by Howard Dean.

Thanks to the continuing popularity and fundraising attraction of President Bush, the RNC continued to vastly out-raise the Democratic party, amassing $24.4 million just in May. Of that, it raised $7.1 million in small donations of $200 or less, the so-called unitemized receipts. The RNC raised more in small increments than the DNC's total take in May of $4.8 million.

McCain himself reported raising slightly more than $21 million on his own -- his best month yet -, roughly the same as Obama -- his slowest month this year. Obama's monthly money haul fell by $11 million in May.

The Obama camapign has contended that the deep pockets of the Republican Party and its allied 527 committees necessitated its decision to forgo public campaign financing and its spending limits. Now that Obama has rescinded his signed promise to accept public funds, he's also hoping for a substantial dollar boost from one-time supporters of his opponent, Sen. Hillary Clinton.

Andrew Malcolm writes for Top of the Ticket, the L.A. Times political blog.

by Mark Silva

MoveOn.org says it is moving away from big money.

The anti-war organization, backing the campaign of Democrat Barack Obama, still says it plans to spend $35 million this election cycle. But it also says it is shutting down a "527 committee it had formed during the 2004 cycle, its "Voter Fund. ''

Instead, MoveOn's Eli Pariser said today, the group will run all of its campaign activity out of a "small-donor'' political action committee. The group, claiming 3.2 million members, maintains it can raise big money with small checks.

In an election year in which Obama is eschewing both lobbyist donations and also public campaign financing in the fall campaign, and has gotten the Democratic National Committee to also swear off lobbyist checks, MoveOn claims to be building on a grassroots movement.

"The small-donor driven politics that built MoveOn and the progressive movement has helped to drive Barack Obama's candidacy," Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn.org, said in a statement today. "We've always believed this new kind of politics can change our country and end the gridlock in DC. And now is the time to let the voices of ordinary Americans be heard in this election."

The group also maintains that only 10 percent of the $122 million that it has raised since 1998 arrived in donations of larger than $5,000.

Now, they're encouraging bake sales.

Pariser is sharing his letter with members:

by Frank James

A lot of fallout today the day after Sen. Barack Obama announced that he decide to forgo accepting public financing for his presidential campaign, thus breaking a promise he made that he would accept such money if his Republican opponent did.

In case anyone missed the outrage, the Republican National Committee was kind enough to send around a collection of media opinions in which Obama is castigated for his action.

Set aside the Alice-Through-the-Looking-Glass quality of Republicans complaining about a political candidate wanting to bury an opponent by raising and spending as much money as possible. It is true that Obama made a promise which he is now breaking.

But Obama is manifestly banking on the notion that if he wins the presidency, all will be forgiven, at least by Democrats. And he's probably right.

Many Democrats are desperate to win the White House after eight years of a Bush presidency. They still grieve over what they view as the squandered potential of the 2000 and 2004 Gore and Kerry campaigns, respectively, they will give Obama a pass for his obvious willingness to play hardball by maximizing his unprecedented ability to raise campaign cash.

What's more, Obama is demonstrating, in the words of JFK meant in a far different context, that he "will pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe" to become president.

by Mark Silva

In the money chase, there are grassroots and there is professional greening.

Now that Sen. Barack Obama is free from the limit of public campaign financing for the fall election, his campaign is courting its broad base of donors to flex their muscles before July Fourth -- showing their "independence'' from "a broken system'' of public campaign financing, as manager David Plouffe put it in an email to supporters.

They are looking for 50,000 donors to weigh in by July Fourth. Their argument for breaking away from the limit of public financing is that Sen. John McCain will be tapping not only his own campaign's resources, but also those of the Republican National Committee -- and will benefit from the backing of outside "527" committees. So they plan to compete, dollar for dollar, and are likely to do very well on that score, considering their fundraising prowess so far.

Still, top-dollar fundraisers figure into any campaign's strategy, and, as our colleagues at Top of the Ticket note, the Obama campaign brought some of Hillary Clinton's donors together with their own for a meeting at the Palmer House in Chicago this week. Obama has become the first major party candidate in decades to forgo public money and the limits that come with it from the convention to the election, and now these fundraisers are free to flex some of their own muscles.

A half-dozen of Clinton's major fundraisers assembled with Obama at the Palmer House, according to the L.A. Times' Dan Morain. Among them: John B. Emerson of Capital Guardian Trust Company in Los Angeles, Thomas F. Steyer of Farallon Capital Management in San Francisco and Gary Gensler, who was Treasury undersecretary under President Clinton. Also: Maureen White, formerly top fund-raiser for the Democratic National Committee, and Michael Coles, who ran for the U.S. Senate from Georgia and is chief executive officer of Caribou Coffee.

Clinton, meanwhile, has called on 100 of her top bundlers of campaign contributions to meet with her and Obama next week at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C. See the account at L.A.'s Top of the Ticket.

by James Oliphant

The Federal Election Commission, crippled by the lack of a quorum, may be finally headed toward some functionality--just in time for the November general election.

The White House Thursday nominated Matthew Petersen, currently the Republican counsel on the Senate Rules Committee to fill the last of four vacant slots.

Petersen's nomination comes a week after controversial FEC nominee Hans von Spakovsky, a former Justice Department official who Democrats say actively worked to suppress minority voting rights, withdrew from consideration. Von Spakovsky was central to an impasse between Republicans and Democrats that resulted in five of the six seats on the commission going unfilled.

"The White House acted quickly in nominating Matthew Petersen to fill the sixth and final slot on the Federal Elections Commission," Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said in a statement Thursday. "This prompt action provides a path toward seating a fully functioning, bipartisan commission. I appreciate the promise of the Majority Leader for a speedy review of Mr. Petersen's record and look forward to his swift and successful confirmation."

President Bush earlier this month reworked his previous nominations to the FEC, replacing former chairman David Mason. Mason had entered into a dispute with the campaign of John McCain over its decision to withdraw from the program that provides a candidate with federal matching funds.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's office suggested Mason was sacked because of his independence. But then later praised the withdrawal of von Spakovsky, expressing hope that the full slate of nominees could now be voted on by the Senate.

by Whitney Blair Wyckoff

As the battle between the remaining Democratic presidential hopefuls wages on, it looks like John McCain might be lending former rival Rudy Giuliani a helping hand.

According to Washington Wire, the Wall Street Journal’s Washington bureau blog, McCain’s people are talking about helping get Giuliani’s campaign out of the red.

Washington Wire reports:

Sen. John McCain’s presidential campaign is not known for its fund raising prowess so it’s unusual that the Arizona senator is using his all-but-certain nominee status to raise money for former rival Rudy Giuliani.

“The Giuliani campaign is trying to retire the debt they incurred during the primary campaign. As the leadership of this campaign, the Senator and I are asking you to help in this effort,” wrote Davis, who praised the former New York City mayor as “a national hero” and thanked him for his “dedicated support” of McCain.

by Frank James

Maybe Sen. Barack Obama's donors are getting tapped out. Or maybe February was such an incredible fundraising month for the Obama campaign that it was impossible to match.

Whatever the case, the Obama campaign is reporting that it raised $40 million in March compared with $55 million in February.

According to the Associated Press's Jim Kuhnhenn, the Obama campaign had more than 218,000 new donors in March.

The AP story also notes that campaign observers are expecting that Sen. Hillary Clinton's fundraising team will raise $20 million.

Here's a key passage from the story that helps to explain some of the fundraising discrepancy between the two campaigns and the implications for campaign advertising, where much of the money raised goes. It comes down to waiting too long to go after smaller donors on the Clinton campaign's part, a misstep that has been reported about before:

Though the New York senator trails Obama in delegates needed for the nomination, Clinton advisers and fundraisers said her donors remain enthusiastic. But her fundraisers also say she relied too much on large donors early in the cycle.

"That pool is reduced," said Larry Stone, a Clinton fundraiser in Silicon Valley who also is the Santa Clara County assessor. "Hillary came really late to the game in effective fundraising on the Internet as compared to Barack Obama ... Many of the solid enthusiastic Clinton supporters were maxed out."

But Stone added: "A big boon to the fundraising has been these appeals for her to withdraw. It makes supporters angry, especially women."

Clinton aides said Wednesday that they anticipate Obama will outspend her by 2-to-1 in Pennsylvania. In the first round of campaign ads, Obama spent about $2 million to Clinton's $450,000, according to data compiled by TNS Media Intelligence/Campaign Media Analysis Group, which tracks political ads. Obama is also already airing ads in Indiana and North Carolina, which won't hold primaries until next month.

"We don't expect to match Senator Obama ad for ad," Wolfson told reporters during a conference call Wednesday.

by Andrew Malcolm

Republican presidential candidates are trailing badly in the campaign fundraising race to win the White House.

But so far this year, and going largely unnoticed, is the fact that Republican governors are far out-raising their Democratic counterparts in the money race to control the state houses.

As members of the Republican Governors Association gathered at the St. Regis Hotel in Dana Point for their post-election conference this week, they can feel a measure of comfort, having won two of three races this year.

Led by Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue, the GOP group raised $12.3 million in the first half of 2007, compared with $5.4 million for the Democratic Governors Association. The GOP likely will need it, given that there are 22 Republican governors and 28 Democrats.

In 2008, there will be 11 gubernatorial races. Democrats expect four incumbents to defend their positions, and hold two others where Democrats are departing.

by Mark Silva

Industries and interest groups that donate the most money to federal election campaigns have ramped up their giving since the 2004 election, an analysis by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics has found, and they are shifting their money toward Democrats.

The securities industry, for one, has increased its giving by 91 percent since the 2004 cycle, for instance. The casino and gaming industry is up 63 percent. And lawyers are up 52 percent, real estate up 51 percent, the pharmaceutical industry up 46 percent.

But it's not just big business that is stepping up its giving.

The list of more generous donors is led by: "Democratic and liberal interest groups.'' Their contributions are up by nearly 400 percent, the center finds.

"On average, top-giving industries and interests have increased their total contributions to candidates for Congress and president, as well as to national party committees, by 46 percent since the same point in time four years ago,'' the Center reports. "Compared with the first three quarters of the 2006 cycle, when there was no election for president, contributions from the top 50 most active industries are up 54 percent.''

by Mike Dorning

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama released an updated list of his top fundraisers today that dislcoses new information on their activities and shows heavy backing from hedge-fund managers, financial industry executives and private investors.

The list of "bundlers"--so called because they gather up contributions into large bundles--provides slightly more detailed disclosure for amounts of money each fundraiser has produced than his opponents offer.

The updated list, posted on his campaign web site, covers fundraising through the third quarter of the year and lists the amount of money each has raised in broad ranges. Other identifying information such as their cities of residence and employers are not listed but in many cases can be determined by independently searching Federal Election Commission donor records for the campaign.

by Josh Drobnyk

If there's one thing that must really irk a former Philadelphia district attorney, it's forking over $58,000 in legal fees to the plush Blank Rome law firm.

But that's exactly what Sen. Arlen Specter did in August, paying the Philly firm to deal with an ongoing Federal Election Commission audit of the senator's 2004 campaign, his office has told The Morning Call .

If there's any consolation for Specter, the five-term Republican from Pennsylvania, it's that he's not paying the fee from his own pocket. It's from those of all his contributors. But for a lawmaker considered a stickler for detail and known to be a tough boss, it must still get the temperature boiling.

The audit stems from his 2004 reelection campaign, Specter's office said.

"The audit focuses on some recordkeeping errors in the campaign's allocation or designation of funds between the general and primary accounts and the inadvertently late reporting of contributions received in the last 20 days before the 2004 primary election," Specter chief of staff Scott Hoeflich said in an e-mail Friday. "We have cooperated fully with the FEC and will continue to work with them to resolve the issues. Additionally, we have taken comprehensive steps to implement procedures to prevent any recurrences of the issues identified in the audit."

by John McCormick

A list quietly posted late Saturday or early Sunday shows Sen. Barack Obama's network of big-money fundraisers continues to expand and more than 300 people have now each raised at least $50,000 on his behalf.

His number of so-called bundlers -- those who ask friends, family and business associates to contribute -- grew to 305, according to a list on his campaign's Web site that included 54 new names since the last update.

Shortly after the end of each quarter, the campaign for the Illinois Democrat and presidential hopeful voluntarily discloses the names of those who have collected at least $50,000 for him.

Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York, the only candidate on either side of the political aisle who has matched Obama's fundraising prowess, discloses her bundlers in a higher denomination.

At last check, her campaign said it has 223 HillRaisers who have each raised at least $100,000. A Clinton spokesman was checking Sunday afternoon to see if that number has grown.

Over the weekend, the Tribune offered an exclusive glimpse inside "Obama University," where veteran bundlers periodically train rookie fundraisers.

Obama's new bundler list means that at least $15 million of the $79 million he raised during the first three quarters of the year came by way of bundlers.

In July, the Tribune reported that at least 22 percent—and likely much more— of the money Obama had raised during the first half of the year came by way of those who had raised at least $50,000.

by John McCormick

Gathered in a Chicago hotel ballroom, the 100 or so students had come from across the nation to learn from some of the top names in the business: Solomont, Kearney, Barzun.

While not household names, they are some of the top players in the presidential money game, where the bundling of contributions by elite fundraisers is an essential part in financing the growing cost of national campaigns.

The three instructors, plus others, spoke at "Obama University." The training program is designed to expand an already massive fundraising operation that raised $79 million during the first three quarters of the year for Sen. Barack Obama, keeping him competitive with Democratic frontrunner Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York.

With titles like "Hunting vs. Farming," "Segmenting your Donors," and "Four Ways to Raise Money," the sessions offered tips of the trade for bundlers, who ask friends, family and business associates to contribute to their candidate. They also were briefed on Obama's central speaking points, as well as upcoming fundraising initiatives like one called "Project Give Again."

The Tribune was offered an exclusive glimpse inside the one-day session earlier this week. As the veterans spoke to the rookies, it at times felt like a motivational meeting for a sales group, sort of Amway goes to Washington.

See the story in this morning's Tribune.

by John McCormick

With a massive office space on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, plus more rented space in the Loop for a volunteer office, it is not surprising that Sen. Barack Obama spent $90,000 during the third quarter on rent in Illinois, his top state for such expenses.

The other four states that rank among his top five for office space spending are all early voting states: Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina.

Rental spending for Democratic front-runner Sen. Hillary Clinton is less obvious. Her top five states are North Carolina (that's where the landlord for the Virginia building used as a campaign headquarters is based), followed by New Hampshire, California, Iowa and New York.

Click the jump below to see the rental spending for Obama and Clinton.

by John McCormick

With the latest databases from the third quarter now loaded, the Tribune has just updated its contribution search engine. To search for contributions from individuals to some of the top Democratic and Republican presidential candidates, click on this link. Or just type chicagotribune.com/contributions into your browser.

by John McCormick

As is often the case, the checks must have been mostly predated for last month's $3 million Oprah Winfrey fundraiser to benefit Sen. Barack Obama.

Held on the grounds of Winfrey's Californian estate, it was the most lucrative fundraiser of Obama's political career. The event was on Sept. 8, but his campaign recorded just $7,835 in contributions for that date, making it one of the least profitable of the third quarter.

Two of the days before the event, however, were among his best for the quarter. On Sept. 5, Obama's campaign logged $407,004 in itemized contributions, according to newly filed Federal Election Commission data. On Sept. 6, it recorded $659,662 in contributions.

I'm sure the senator has already sent Oprah a thank you note.

For a look at how various dates during the quarter ranked for Obama's itemized contributions, based on a Tribune analysis of the donations, click on the jump below.

by John McCormick, Updated at 1:25 p.m. Eastern

Sen. Barack Obama maintained his fundraising advantage over Sen. Hillary Clionton in his home state of Illinois, but the gap was smaller than in previous quarters.

Detailed Federal Election Commission reports filed overnight show Obama raised $1.66 million in Illinois during the period from July through September, while Clinton netted $1.13 million. Clinton held several large fundraisers in Chicago near the end of the reporting period.

Illinois was Obama's third biggest fundraising state, behind California and New York. It was Clinton's sixth largest state, if the District of Columbia is included in the rankings. The nation's capital was her top location for donations during the quarter.

At the city level, Clinton raised about $541,000 during the quarter from those listing Chicago addresses, compared to about $809,000 for Obama. In New York City, Clinton raised $2.7 million, compared to $1.1 million for Obama.

Including non-itemized contributions, a type that cannot be inspected in the public records, Obama's campaign says it raised $2.19 million during the third quarter from Illinois, bringing its year-to-date amount raised in the state to $11.5 million.

Sen. Barack Obama addresses a crowd in Madison, Wis. this week. AP Photo/Andy Manis

by John McCormick

As Sen. Barack Obama's supporters awoke today, they were greeted with an e-mail that seeks to paint the Illinois Democrat as an underdog against a candidate he is increasingly calling out by name.

Under the headline "Hillary's Money," Obama is asking for a quick couple million from his backers.

“The situation here is simple,” he states in the e-mail. “We are $2.1 million behind. We must close that gap right now. I need you to make a donation of $50."

The message arrives as news organizations report that Sen. Hillary Clinton has slightly more money in the bank for the primary battle than Obama, $35 million to $32 million.

by John McCormick and Mike Dorning, updated at 9:51 p.m. Eastern

Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign has $35 million in the bank for use in her primary campaign, slightly more than the $32 million reported earlier this evening by Sen. Barack Obama.

The Illinois Democrat's campaign said it had 108,000 new donors during the quarter, when it pulled in $20 million. That compares to "over 100,000" reported by the New York senator this evening.

Obama spokesman Bill Burton said a surge in donations via the Internet and mail brought the campaign's total new donors for the quarter to 108,000, up significantly from the preliminary number of 93,000 released earlier this month.

During the first three quarters of the year, Obama amassed 365,000 donors.

“The strength of our historic small donor base is in activism, not just contributions,” campaign manager David Plouffe said in a statement. “The vast majority of these supporters have not yet achieved their full giving potential and will ensure our ability to continue to raise the resources needed to win the nomination. Many of these donors will also provide organizational strength by going door-to-door, making phone calls and actively helping Barack Obama become the next president of the United States.”

By Tom Hundley

LONDON -- An unusual veil of secrecy shrouded Michelle Obama’s fundraising trip here Monday evening.

The $2,300-a-head event at the Landmark Hotel was “closed to the press.” But the hotel lobby 45 minutes before the event started?

When a young campaign aide spotted a Tribune reporter chatting with a couple of enthusiastic Obama supporters, he interrupted the conversation and scolded the reporter.

“This is a private event. We have to ask you to exit the hotel,” the aide said.

The taken-aback reporter declined, pointing out that a hotel lobby is a public gathering place and that he had no intention of crashing the event. Asked why the hotel lobby had to be declared a press-free zone, the aide said something about “protecting the privacy” of the people who paid to be here.

Campaign officials were equally close-mouthed about the number of attendees, the amount of money raised, the substance of Ms. Obama’s remarks and what kind of food was served to donors.

By Mike Dorning

Republican presidential candidate John McCain is again trailing top-tier competitors in quarterly fundraising results.

McCain's campaign announced a few minutes ago that the Arizona senator had raised $6 million in contributions during the past three months. That's just slightly more than was raised by libertarian Rep. Ron Paul (R-Tex.), who received $5 million in contributions during the same period.

After low enthusiasm among donors for his campaign during the first half of the year, McCain reorganized his campaign staff and has since been running a frugal campaign. His campaign said he will report $3.6 million in cash on hand.

Other top-tier Republican candidates have had greater success with donors during the July-through September quarter, according to figures released by their campaigns. Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani raised $11 million; former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney raised $10 million; and former Sen. Fred Thompson of Tennessee raised $9.3 million.

Sen.John McCain, who stands by President Bush on the war in Iraq, addressed cadets at Camden Military Academy in Camden, S.C. this week. AP Photo by Willis Glassgow

by Andrew Malcolm

You saw a lot of Erik Prince on TV the last couple of days, spending considerable time calmly fending off inquiries from agitated Democratic congressmen about his security company's suddenly controversial activities in Iraq. One explanation may be that Prince, the head of Blackwater, U.S.A., has a lengthy political pedigree as a Republican.

Members of the House Oversight Committee, which is chaired by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Beverly Hills), accused Blackwater employees of being "cowboys" who acted recklessly during their contracted security duties for the State Department in Iraq. It also came out that Blackwater, which has lost some three dozen employees in Iraq hostilities, has a 100 percent success rate in protecting VIPs under its contract.

This may shock some, but it also turns out that the target of the committee's angry questions was a 38-year-old former Navy SEAL who has donated $230,000 to federal campaigns and causes in the last decade. Almost all of that money has gone to Republicans, according to a check of Federal Election Commission records by The Times' campaign finance expert, Dan Morain.

Prince's latest donation was in July, when he gave $20,000 to the National Republican Congressional Committee. California recipients of Prince’s $1,000 checks include Reps. Jerry Lewis and Duncan Hunter, a current GOP presidential candidate, and former Rep. Richard Pombo.

by John McCormick

Sen. Hillary Clinton is expected in Chicago today for two fundraising events which organizers say are expected to net about $750,000.

The New York Democrat's arrival comes just days after her presidential campaign announced that she raised more money during the third quarter than Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.

Jay Robert "J.B." Pritzker, a Chicago billionaire who is a national co-chairman for the Clinton campaign, said it is starting to get easier to raise money in Obama's home city.

"I wouldn’t call it hedging their bets," he said. "It's still a tough environment, but the purse strings for her have loosened here."

Collecting $750,000 in a single day from Chicago is an impressive sum for Clinton, although it is still smaller than the $1.5 million to $2 million Obama collected in the city by attending four back-to-back events in June.

Pritzker's sister, Penny Pritzker, is Obama's national finance chairman. "It's not a competition," he said, when asked about his sibling's fundraising efforts.

Pritzker said he was not prepared to criticize his favorite candidate for her recent answer in a debate about whether she would root for the Cubs or the Yankees, should the teams ever find themselves in the World Series.

"That is a tough one for her," Pritzker said.

By Mike Dorning

Republican presidential candidate Fred Thompson raised more than $8 million during the third quarter fundraising period that closed at midnight last night, said a campaign aide who declined to be identified

More than half of the money--about $5 million--has flowed into the campaign since Thompson's official Sept. 5 kickoff, the aid said.

The third quarter fundraising is in addition to $3.5 million that the candidate's exploratory committee raised during June, before the beginning of the third quarter. The campaign has not released its cash on hand.

By Mike Dorning

Hours before the close of the quarterly financial reporting period for presidential campaigns at midnight tonight, the Barack Obama campaign announced a few moments ago that it had attracted more than 350,000 donors since the start of his bid for the White House.

The Obama campaign has consistently reported previously unmatched numbers of donors each quarter this year.

The announcement today follows a pattern Obama has set all year long of first focusing attention on the numbers of people who have donated to the campaign. The campaign portrays the numbers of small donors as an indicator of grass-roots enthusiasm for their candidate.

The campaign has generally waited a day or two before announcing a dollar figure for its quarterly fundraising. Obama also has outpaced his rivals so far in fundraising but not nearly as dramatically as in numbers of donors. Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton so far has been raising comparable amounts of cash, although she relies more on big-dollar donors.

Presidential campaigns will likely begin announcing their fundraising totals in the coming days after the quarterly fundraising period ends at midnight tonight.

Among Democrats, the advance spin has Clinton and Obama running close to each other infundraising, with different sources putting either side ahead. But such advance spin has more to do with managing press expectations for maximum impact than providing accurate information.

by Mark Silva

On his last day in New York today, after meetings in and around the United Nations, President Bush raised some more money for the Republican Party.

His motorcade pulled out of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel before noon today, sped long a deserted FDR Drive -- what a sight for New Yorkers; helps when the Secret Service closes the roads -- and got off on the Upper East Side. Bush arrived at the Fifth Avenue apartment of Jennifer Yafa, chairman of the Manhattan Republican Party, and Roger Yaffa.

The pool reporters following the president were held at the nearby Three Guys restaurant, where a plate of broiled Boston scrod fetches $13.95.

The Republican National Committee said the event pulled in about $1 million -- enough to buy 71,428 slabs of scrod, by pooler Joe Curl's math. With thanks to Joe.

The president left at about 12:30, his racing motorcade escorted along the East River by police boats. His helicopter lifted off from Wall Street, and Air Force One left JFK International Airport, returning the president to Washington this afternoon.

(The president and First Lady Laura Bush boarding Air Force One to leave JFK International airport today following a $1-million party fundraiser and meetings at the United Nations. AP Photo by Rick Maiman.)

by Mike Dorning

In a preview of Barack Obama's fundraising performance and a last-minute effort to rev up contributions during the final week of the third-quarter fundraising period, the Illinois senator is claiming his presidential campaign has added some 75,000 donors since the end of the last financial reporting period for candidates on June 30.

In an e-mail to supporters today, Obama claims 333,851 people have now donated to his campaign since its inception, for a total of 472,613 donations. The campaign is trying to motivate supporters to break a goal of 350,000 donors providing more than 500,000 contributions by Sept. 30.

"We're facing a hard deadline in less than a week," Obama writes. "The financial reports filed after September 30th will set the tone for the last 100 days before people start voting and caucusing. The numbers will be a signal to voters in the crucial early states that our movement has the support it takes to win."

The campaign is also trying to motivate new donors with a promotional program in which established donors are offering to match contributions from new donors.

Norman Hsu, second from left, escorted by San Mateo County, Calif., Sheriff's deputies at airport in Grand Junction Colo., Thursday, Sept 20, 2007. AP Photo/Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, Christopher Tomlinson

by James Oliphant

The now-infamous Democratic money-man Norman Hsu was indicted today by federal prosecutors in New York, who accused him of running a $60 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded investors nationwide.

Hsu is the New York businessman who bundled more than $1 million in contributions to Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign. After a story last month in the Wall Street Journal questioned the legitimacy of the donations, Hsu was arrested on a fugitive warrant in a 15-year old grand theft case in California. Clinton later pledged to return $850,000 in donations.

That, it seems, is now the least of his troubles. The U.S. attorney’s office in Manhattan alleges that Hsu used his political contributions to lend legitimacy to an investment scheme that persuaded investors to give Hsu greater and greater amounts of money in exchange for short-term returns that were spotty or nonexistent.

“Hsu made victims believe that failure to make political contributions to candidates he supported would jeopardize their investment relationship with him, and put their money at risk,” the U.S. attorney’s office said in a statement released this afternoon.

Along with two counts of fraud, Hsu is charged with violating federal election laws for allegedly employing others to make campaign donations on his behalf and then reimbursing them. Hsu faces 45 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

by Mark Silva and Jill Zuckman

With word that one of Sen. Hillary Clinton's leading fundraisers is wanted on grand theft charges in California, Clinton’s campaign says it will give $23,000 it had collected from him to charity and review thousands of dollars more which businessman Norman Hsu has raised for her.

Another onetime Democratic candidate for president, Sen. John Kerry, also has decided to give a lesser amount of money that he had collected from Hsu to charity. Kerry (D-Mass.), the party's 2004 presidential nominee, "will be giving all contributions he received from Norman Hsu to charity,'' a spokeswoman for Kerry says.

In Kerry's case, it apparently wasn't that much money. Federal Election Commission records show that Hsu contributed $2,000 to Kerry's presidential campaign in 2003 and another $2,000 to Kerry’s “general election legal and accounting compliance fund” the following year.

Hsu also donated $2,000 to Obama’s Senate race in October 2004 - about two months after Obama became a national sensation at the Democratic National Convention

But then Hsu started giving money to Clinton's campaign, and raising money for her as well, and he has steered a lot of money her way.

When Jon Stewart had Barack Obama on his show in November 2005, Stewart asked about Obama's colleagues in the Senate: "Is there somebody who you just thinkk 'Man, that guy, he can't even read.'" Obama replied: "There are a couple guys where you do sort of think: How did you get here exactly?" Comedy Central photo.

by Mike Dorning

Barack Obama isn't waiting for his appearance on "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" next Wednesday to use the invitation as a chance to expand his following.

Campaign manager David Plouffe sent out an e-mail to Obama supporters just a few minutes ago offering an all-expenses-paid trip to the popular comedy show's taping as a prize in a contest to recruit new donors to the campaign.

In a twist on the kind of recruiting promotions regularly empoyed by health clubs, anyone who recruits a new donor by the end of the week will be entered in a drawing for a pair of tickets to the shows taping: one for the supporter who recruits the new donor and one for the donor he or she recruits.

It's the latest example of the kind of mass-marketing fundraising incentives in the current presidential campaign that has candidates' appeals for donations sometimes reading like they might have come from Ed McMahon of Publishers Clearinghouse.

by John McCormick

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama continues a five-day tour across Iowa today, starting the day in Council Bluffs and ending it at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines. But Wednesday evening, he spent some quality time with Warren Buffett in Omaha.

Here is the Tribune story on Buffet and Obama in Thursday's editions.

The audio file of Buffett introducing Obama is posted here.

(Photo from MittRomney.com)

by Mark Silva

Old traditions die hard, veteran political reporter Thomas Edsall reminds us.

In the old days, precinct bosses liked to spread a little "walking around money'' to local clubs, paying precinct workers to get voters out to the polls and showing them how to vote.

These days, Republican Mitt Romney has revived the grassroots distribution of campaign cash in Iowa, where he is campaigning for his party's presidential campaign.

Read the work of Edsall and Ethan Hova from the Huffington Post's Eyes on the Money project, part of their Off TheBus campaign reporting and a result of closer reading of the Federal Election Comission's campaign finance reports.

See it here in the Swamp:

by John McCormick

For the man who has almost everything, what to give the junior senator from Illinois?

A growing group of supporters nationwide thinks it has the answer: 46 bucks.

As Sen. Barack Obama prepares to celebrate his 46th birthday on Aug. 4, small donors across the nation are getting their credit cards ready to donate that much to his Democratic presidential bid, which is already raising record sums.

by John McCormick

Sen. Barack Obama now has the edge in primary funds raised, but the Illinois Democrat maintains he can still run as the underdog in the presidential field.

"I think when your name is Barack Obama, you are always the underdog," Obama told the Tribune after a Sunday news conference in Chicago. "You're like Avis, you always have to work harder."

The Tribune's report on second-quarter fundraising by Obama and the other presidential candidate's is linked here.

by Mike Dorning

John Edwards might consider a thank you note to Ann Coulter

The Democratic presidential candidate announced a few moments ago that he will report a campaign warchest available for use in the primaries of just over $12 million.

His campaign's bank balance is slightly higher, at $13.3 million on June 30, but the remainder of the funds can only be used for the general election, according to a report his campaign will file shortly with the Federal Election Commission.

Shortly before the close of the quarter, conservative talk show host Ann Coulter, who had previously used a sexual slur to describe Edwards, said she wished that the Democrat would be assassinated by terrorists. A day later, Elizabeth Edwards phoned into MSNBC's "Hardball" during a Coulter appearance to confront her on the air. The Edwards campaign then featured Coulter in e-mail fundraising appeals, which first went out on June 26.

By the June 30 close of the quarter, the Edwards campaign raised $9 million during the three-month period and spent $6.4 million on operating costs during the period.

by Mike Dorning

Democratic presidential candidate Bill Richardson showed rising financial strength during the second quarter of the year, accumulating a campaign warchest of $7.1 million by June 30, according to a disclosure report filed today.

The New Mexico governor's campaign raised $7 million from April through June, keeping expenses for the quarter below $5 million.

Richardson's financial resources lag far behind Democratic front-runners Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) but his campaign is drawing closer in financial terms to the other major candidate, former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.)

by John McCormick and Mike Dorning

Updated at 8:10 p.m.

Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama reported today that he raised at least $32.5 million during the second quarter of the year, enough to make him the top money raiser among Democrats during the latest quarter and for the year so far.

The second-quarter figure showed Obama's fundraising pace is accelerating even from the staggering $25.7 million he raised during the first quarter. His campaign said that about $31 million of the second-quarter total were dollars that can be used for the primary campaign.

"Together, we have built the largest grassroots campaign in history for this stage of a presidential race," Obama said in a statement. "We now have hundreds of thousands of Americans who are ready to demand health care for all, energy independence, and an end to this war in Iraq. That’s the kind of movement that can change the special interest-driven politics in Washington and transform our country. And it’s just the beginning."

Obama's campaign Web site reported nearly 258,000 overall donors for the first six months of the year, meaning about 154,000 new donors gave him money during the second quarter.

"Every day over the past three months, over 1,500 Americans have made clear to Barack Obama that they believe in his vision for our country by contributing to his campaign," Chicagoan Penny Pritzker, Obama's national finance chair, said in a statement.

Earlier this weekend, the campaign of former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards said it had raised more than $9 million during the quarter, down from the $14 million he raised during the first three months of the year.

The campaign for New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson said Friday that he raised more than $7 million during the second quarter.

For her part, Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign said Sunday evening that she had raised about $21 million for the primary and "in the range" of $27 million overall. That is up slightly from the $26.1 million she raised during the first quarter.

During the first quarter, about three-quarters of Clinton's total funds raised were available for use in the primary campaign.

Federal campaign finance rules limit contributors to a $2,300 contribution to a candidate's primary campaign. But big-dollar donors also can contribute up to an additional $2,300 for use only during the general election campaign.

Several of the Republicans, meanwhile, are expected to report their totals Monday.

by Mike Dorning

Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards has raised more than $9 million during the past three months, a fundraising pace that has slowed since the first quarter of the year but is likely to sustain his place among the three Democratic candidates with the greatest financial strength.

About an hour before the midnight deadline that ends the second-quarter reporting period for campaign contirbutions, the Edwards campaign sent out an e-mail to supporters announcing the candidate had achieved the $9 million goal he set for himself earlier during the week.

Still, the total was well short of the $14 million he raised during the first three months of the year.

by John McCormick

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama continues to rack up contributions from online and other donors, with his campaign saying today that it received money from nearly a quarter-million people during the first six months of the year.

Obama received contributions from about 104,000 donors during the first quarter, but he has built on that pace in the second quarter. As of mid-morning, the campaign says it has received contributions from nearly 245,000 people so far this year.

The release is meant to rally donors in the final days before the June 30 reporting deadline for the second quarter, as well as set expectations for a strong Obama showing during the period.

But the campaign still won't provide any sense for how much those donors have given. Obama raised $25.7 million in the first quarter.

by John McCormick

It was head-to-head Democratic fundraising Monday evening in Chicago.

Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois set up shop at Fulton's on the River for an event that was expected to raise about $100,000. Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York was about six blocks south at the Palmer House Hilton for one that was expected to raise about $750,000.

Reporters were not allowed into either gathering.

Obama, meanwhile, was expected to attend a second Chicago fundraiser Tuesday morning, at the very same hotel where Clinton held her event. His was scheduled less than 12 hours after her guests were to clear out.

All of the presidential candidates are racing toward a June 30 deadline for second-quarter fundraising that will be used by some to help judge their viability as candidates.

by John McCormick

Maybe it's just a coincidence, but Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama will have fundraisers next week in Chicago within a day of each other and in the same hotel.

Clinton will start off the fun Monday evening with an event at the Palmer House Hilton that is expected to draw several hundred. It is being sponsored by some big Chicago Democratic names such as Myron Cherry, Fred Eychaner and Joe Power, Jr. Access to the cocktail reception will run $1,000, while drinks and dinner will set donors back $2,300, the full amount allowed for a primary campaign contribution.

Like Clinton's event, Obama's is being hosted by a group that includes several trial lawyers, always an important donor base for Democrats. Less than 12 hours after Clinton's dinner crowd clears out, Obama is expected to arrive for what looks to be a breakfast "reception," with the eggs costing a "suggested contribution of $2,300 or $1,000." Some of Obama's hosts for the event are Bob Clifford, Kevin Conway and Bruce M. Kohen.

All of the presidential candidates are racing toward a June 30 deadline for second-quarter fundraising that will be used by some to help judge their viability as candidates.

by John McCormick

Picking up the pace of his fundraising as the end of the second quarter draws near, Sen. Barack Obama pulled in an estimated $1.5 to $2 million on Friday in Chicago.

The haul was made in less than 10 hours, with the presidential candidate making stops at four events here, a market that has easily proven to be his most lucrative.

"If we didn't have a strong base here, we couldn't do what we are doing in Iowa and New Hampshire," the Illinois Democrat said, as he and his wife entered the back door of Carnivale in the Fulton Market area.

Outside the restaurant, luxury cars and SUVs were doubled-parked as the valets struggled to keep up with the traffic for a gathering with a suggested minimum admission of $1,000.

The event, believed to have netted between $1 million to $1.5 million, was among the most profitable of Obama's campaign so far. It attracted hundreds of people, with each giving up to $4,600 for his primary and potential general election campaign.

Posted by John McCormick at 6:05 a.m. CDT

Sen. Barack Obama’s campaign is planning what could be the largest fundraiser of his presidential bid so far, a big-dollar event in Chicago that is expected to raise at least $1.5 million in a single evening.

Minimum suggested admission for the June 8 reception at the Park West theater, 322 W. Armitage Ave., is $1,000.

A flier for the event lists nine individuals or couples who have each pledged to raise at least $100,000, enough to make them "chairs" for the "Celebration with Senator Barack and Michelle Obama."

Posted by Mike Dorning and John McCormick at 6:30 am CDT.

Democratic Sen. Barack Obama took in more money in contributions for the presidential primary than any other candidate during the first three months of the year. But front-runner Hillary Clinton still has the financial advantage, with a bigger bank balance, thanks to a transfer from funds left over after her Senate re-election campaign last year.

Though late in preparing for a presidential bid compared to his rivals, the $24.8 million in contributions that Obama raised for the primary comfortably exceeded $19.1 million that Clinton raised, despite the former first lady's well-established network of donors and supporters.

Still, Clinton has the bigger war chest. The New York senator reported $24.1 million available for her primary campaign, bolstered by $10 million from her Senate re-election campaign. She also raised an additional $6.9 million that only can be used in a general election campaign.

Posted by Mike Dorning at 12:10 pm CST

Several former Clinton Administration officials were among the contributors who attended a Barack Obama fundraiser on Thursday night at the Bethesda, Md., home of Reed Hundt, who was Federal Communications Commission Chairman during the Clinton Administration.

William Kennard, who also chaired the FCC during the Clinton Administration, was an official "host" for the evening. A campaign spokesman declined to provide an estimate of money was raised at the event.

Richard Clarke, author and counter-terrorism coordinator for the Clinton Administration and early Bush Administration was among those who contributed at the fundraiser, said an Obama insider.

Amb. Charlene Barshefsky, who was U.S. Trade Representative during the Clinton Administration, was among the Obama donors at the event. Miriam Sapiro, a counselor to Clinton on Balkans policy who helped negotiate the 1995 Dayton Accords, was an official "co-host."

Posted by Josh Drobnyk at 10:07 a.m. CST

Rick Santorum isn't yet siding with a presidential candidate, but that doesn't mean he's not crossing folks off his list.

Already gone from Santorum's consideration: Arizona Sen. John McCain.

"I've never been a big fan of Sen. McCain in his ability to be president," Santorum said in an interview with Pittsburgh's KDKA-TV to be broadcast in full Sunday. "He'd probably be the only one at this point that I've sort of taken out of the running."

Speculation in Pennsylvania political circles had been that the former Republican senator had jumped on the Rudy Giuliani bandwagon, but Santorum insisted he's waiting to make an endorsement.

Posted by William Neikirk at 10:50 a.m. CST

Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina called the spat between Democratic front-running Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama a "bunch of silliness."

On CBS' Face the Nation, the senator said during a trip to New Hampshire, the issue never came up. "Not a single voter asked about this," he said, referring to criticism of Clinton by an Obama supporter, Hollywood mogul David Geffen.

But it was a hot topic on Sunday talk shows.

Posted by Mike Dorning at 1:50 pm CST.

Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign is already tapping its well-established network of small-dollar donors with an Internet-based campaign to raise $1 million in one week.

An e-mail sent out about an hour ago under the name of political strategist James Carville showed that the campaign had already raised $285,332 for its "One Week, One Million" fundraising campaign.

"Our 'One Week, One Million' campaign will send a clear message: Hillary won't back down, and we've got her back," Carville write in the e-mail.

Expect many more of such Internet fundraising campaigns in the year ahead. With this year's campaign expected to be the most expensive ever and the cost of an e-mail fundraising plea virtually free, candidates and their surrogates will be frequent visitors to the in-box of anyone who gives their e-mail address to a political campaign.

Posted by Mike Dorning at 6:30 am CST.

Barack Obama the presidential candidate made his Hollywood debut Tuesday night.

At the Beverly Hilton, site of the Golden Globe Awards, the stars of the entertainment world came out for a $2,300-per-ticket campaign fundraiser with the political celebrity of the moment.

There was no red carpet. But flashes popped in the hotel lobby as tourists spotted Jennifer Aniston entering.

Guest Posted by David Lightman at 6:08 a.m. CST

The Federal Election Commission is questioning whether the Connecticut Senate campaigns of Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman and Democratic challenger Ned Lamont fully disclosed all of their contributions. Here's the rest of my story in today's Hartford Courant.

Posted by Frank James at 7:32 am CST

The New York Times's David Kirkpatrick today has a piece on a novel campaign-financing idea being proposed by Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.)

In a filing with the Federal Elections Committee, Obama has put forward the notion that whoever eventually become the Democratic and Republican presidential nominees agree to limit their private fundraising and stay within the public-campaign finance system for the general election.

To put it bluntly, no way this is going to happen. There's just too much money and too much power at stake for most major-party candidates to declare this kind of truce and partial monetary disarmament.

But it's an interesting strategem which will allow Obama to take the high road as a campaign-finance reformer.

That was an issue that had until now seemed to belong to Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican, because of his very real bona fides on the issue. He's got the eponymous McCain-Feingold campaign finance legislation, after all.

If Obama were to become the nominee and face McCain, this would let Obama keep McCain on the defensive on McCain's signature issue. White House political guru Karl Rove, the master at neutralizing an opposing candidate's political strength, could not do better.

As the Times story notes, this tactic appears more immediately targeted at Obama's fellow Democrat Sen. Hillary Clinton who has already announced her intention to opt out of public financing for the primary and general election.