A big headline at Raw Story is that a new report by the Center for Responsive Politics shows Obama got a whopping $20 mil from HC related companies.
A new figure, based on an exclusive analysis created for Raw Story by the Center for Responsive Politics, shows that President Obama received a staggering $20,175,303 from the healthcare industry during the 2008 election cycle, nearly three times the amount of his presidential rival John McCain. McCain took in $7,758,289, the Center found.
"What it also means when you look at it just on its own merit is that Obama definitely has a relationship with the health sector," Levinthal told Raw Story. "When you raise $20 million from one group, obviously they’ve curried some favor with you and you have a lot of people in that sector who support you. So to say that just because he out-raised McCain overall doesn’t mean anything in the context of the health sector might not necessarily be true."
"People want to be able to curry favor with those who are in power," he added. "And one way to do that is by making donations to candidates and officials who are represented by the party in power. Or who look like they’re going to win."
You don't say.
This puts the lie to the impression created by the Obama campaign that his campaign was funded primarily by small, personal donors anfd that as such, he would be immune to the influence of money. In fact, an analysis by the Campaign Finance Institute, found that "Obama Received About the Same Percentage from Small Donors in 2008 as Bush in 2004"
Obama also raised 80% more from large donors than small, outstripping all rivals and predecessors
It turns out that Barack Obama's donors may not have been quite as different as we had thought. Throughout the election season, this organization and others have been reporting that Obama received about half of his discrete contributions in amounts of $200 or less. The Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) noted in past releases that donations are not the same as donors, since many people give more than once. After a more thorough analysis of data from the Federal Election Commission (FEC), it has become clear that repeaters and large donors were even more important for Obama than we or other analysts had fully appreciated.
"The myth is that money from small donors dominated Barack Obama's finances," said CFI's executive director Michael J. Malbin. "The reality of Obama's fundraising was impressive, but the reality does not match the myth."
The reality does not match the myth. That could very well describe Obama's whole presidency so far.
The fact is, while Obama was playing himself as a man of the people, and someone who was immune to the corrupting influence of money, he was taking the money the whole time.
This casts this 2007 article from The Hill in a new light. In it, it is revealed that while Obama was campaigning on not taking money from lobbyist, he was secretly accepting money from lobbyist wives and soliciting help to get access to lobbyists clients.
Obama’s K Street project
By Alexander Bolton
March 29, 2007
Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is benefiting from the support of well-connected Washington lobbyists even though he has prohibited his campaign from accepting contributions from them and political action committees (PACs).
Mike Williams, the director of government relations at Credit Suisse Securities, said of the network of lobbyists supporting Obama: "I would imagine that it’s as large as the Clinton list," in reference to rival presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), who is an entrenched favorite of the Washington Democratic establishment.
He said that while lobbyists cannot give money to Obama, they can give "policy" and "campaign support." Indeed, K Street denizens have rare policy and national campaign expertise. Williams is actively building support for Obama among lobbyists and the corporate clients they represent. While other Obama supporters have described him as a leading activist, Williams demurs: "I wouldn’t want to put my position as a spearhead." He acknowledges that the gains Obama is making among Washington’s Democratic establishment are hard to see because Obama’s K Street supporters have kept a low profile.
As a result, Obama’s K Street network is a stealthy operation.
Wow. Obama was getting secret support from K Street lobbyists while campaigning against too much influence from lobbyists.
Other K Street players working to build momentum for Obama are former Sen. Tom Daschle (D-S.D.), a consultant for Alston & Bird; Broderick Johnson, president of Bryan Cave Strategies LLC; Mark Keam, the lead Democratic lobbyist at Verizon; Jimmy Williams, vice president of government affairs for the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America; Thomas Walls, vice president of federal public affairs at McGuireWoods Consulting; and Francis Grab, senior manager at Washington Council Ernst & Young.
Wow. Verizon. Maybe that explains Obama's dramatic FLIP FLOP on FISA. But the money quote is this:
Some of Obama’s K Street boosters keep their support a secret to uphold Obama’s image as a Washington outsider untainted by D.C.’s influence business.
Some of Obama's K Street boosters keep their support a secret.
I'll just let that hang a bit.
Some of Obama’s K Street boosters keep their support a secret to uphold Obama’s image as a Washington outsider untainted by D.C.’s influence business.
We were had. Adjust.