Early on, Team Obama was bragging about raising $1 billion.
When over the summer and fall fundraising did not seem to be all it should be, the confidence remained.
Now, not so much. Via The Hill:
For some Obama supporters, the presidential campaign’s fundraising totals, released Monday, might have left something to be desired.While Team Obama surpassed its $29 million fundraising haul in January, racking up more than $45 million in February, the campaign is lagging behind its February 2008 totals. Obama has also fallen behind George W. Bush’s fundraising pace in the 2004 election cycle, raising some worries from donors.
As before, Team Obama is highlighting small donors, but one has to wonder how many were drawn in by the $3 raffles for dinner with Obama, and how many of those small donors will shell out the kind of cash Obama needs:
Obama campaign officials and some high-profile Obama financiers expressed confidence Monday that they are where they need to be, highlighting that most of last month’s contributions came from small donors who gave the campaign $250 or less. Campaign officials say 105,000 donors gave for the first time.
Don’t get me wrong. Obama will have plenty of money. But $1 billion is looking more and more unlikely.
Obama always has created the false impression that small donors were his base, but in fact he relies heavily on big donors and bundlers.
Comparisons to Republican primary fundraising are meaningless. When there is a nominee, and the focus is on defeating Obama not each other, the spigots will open.
Obama always has been a complete phony when it comes to campaigns. He complains about the role of money in politics but is a virtual vacuum cleaner when it comes to raising campaign cash, so much that he was the first president to opt out of federal funding. It’s always been about the money for Obama, and now that the money isn’t coming as quickly as he wants, expect his fundraising efforts to reach a fevered pitch.
Being President comes second.
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