I've received an invitation to a "Victory Dinner" with John McCain, a fundraiser for his campaign and the Republican party.
Once I got over the sticker shock:
- Victory Dinner - $33,100 per person.
- Photo Reception - $10,000 per person/ Contribute or Raise.
- VIP Reception - $2,300 per person.
- General Reception - $1,000 per person.
I kept reading. The real story (though no big shock) is in the state parties he's raising money for. Read on to find out who -- and for something you can do with your time and money instead of posing for photos with McSame.
Here's the fine print:
Contributions to McCain Victory 2008 are not deductible as charitable contributions for federal income-tax purposes. McCain Victory 2008 allocates contributions to John McCain 2008, John McCain 2008 General Election Compliance Fund, the Republican National Committee, and state parties’ federal accounts in compliance with federal limits. Unless a contribution would exceed federal limits or a contributor designates otherwise, McCain Victory 2008 will divide contributions as follows:
- For Individuals—The first $2,300 to JM 2008, the next $2,300 to the Compliance Fund, the next $28,500 to the RNC, and the balance of up to $37,000 will be divided evenly between the Colorado, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Wisconsin [emphasis mine] state parties’ federal accounts.
- [Omitted: breakdowns for couples and Federal Multicandidate PACS.]
Contributions to the Compliance Fund will be used solely for legal and accounting services to ensure compliance with federal law and not for campaign activities. Compliance funds may defray a portion of broadcast advertising, national and state office "overhead", and computer/website expenses. Contributions from corporations, labor unions, federal contractors, and foreign nationals without permanent residency status to McCain Victory 2008 are prohibited.
Of course, it's no surprise that these four states are in play -- they're the states most often mentioned by the Obama campaign as states they believe they can carry to change the game in 2008.
Here's a breakdown of the 2000 and 2004 general election results from the four states:
State | Bush 2000 | Gore 2000 | 2000 Spread | Bush 2004 | Kerry 2004 | 2004 Spread | 2000-2004 Delta |
Colorado | 883,748 | 738,227 | R+145521 | 1,101,255 | 1,001,732 | R+99523 | R-45998 |
Minnesota | 1,109,659 | 1,168,266 | R-58607 | 1,346,695 | 1,445,014 | R-98319 | R-39712 |
New Mexico | 286,417 | 286,783 | R-366 | 376,930 | 370,942 | R+5988 | R+6354 |
Wisconsin | 1,237,279 | 1,242,987 | R-5708 | 1,478,120 | 1,489,504 | R-11384 | R-5676 |
Obviously, the Republican party needs McCain out raising money for these state parties right now. This lends further credence to the idea that the states are likely to go blue in November, and suggests that Democrats should be redoubling their efforts to raise money for their state counterparts to force the GOP to spend more in the contested states.
To that end, here are contribution pages for the four state parties via ActBlue:
And here are the pages for the Vote for Change voter registration and mobilization drives for each state: Colorado, Minnesota, New Mexico, and Wisconsin.
Let's show them what they're up against.