Designated Hero: Obama Raised $86+ Million Compared to GOP Candidates' Paltry $35 Million

WARNING: Today, you will see many ZOMG! DOUBLE-RAINBOW-ish headlines in the papers and much breathless gushing on the news channels about Obama's fund-raising haul with barely veiled suggestions that his money will inevitably carry him back to the White House in 2012.

First, take care not to aspirate your vomit; I'm rather fond of you.

Second, take heart. The MBM is back in Designated Hero territory and that means the actual situation bears little resemblance to the Democratic fantasy. Here are the facts:

Last quarter Obama's campaign raised $47 million. Combined, the GOP campaigns raised about $35 million. Now that doesn't sound so bad, does it? In fact, the $12 million difference is shockingly low, given that the Democrats already know who their candidate is and many GOP donors are waiting until the GOP field narrows to get in it.

So where is the MBM's $86 million number coming from? They're adding the DNC's haul to the President's. Last quarter the DNC brought in $38 million from fund-raisers hosted by the President. It's a bit apples and oranges, though, isn't it? Much of the DNC money will go toward paying for things other than the presidential election.

Third, take note of the left-wing flip-flop. When you went to bed last night, Democrats were insisting that money is a horrible evil when it comes to politics. Liberals were lamenting money's influence in 2010 and cursing Justice Alito for daring to suggest that the President's demagoguery against campaign spending was misplaced. When you woke up this morning, though, it turned out that campaign money is a very good thing. Liberals are more than happy to cheer the news that the President will have an enormous cash advantage.

Finally, take this chart to any Democrat who buzzes about the President's fund-raising. The President is underwater again and he's fresh out of bin Laden's to kill. So his ability to separate Democratic donors from their money will be used by the MBM as a proxy for his favorability among the public at large. Do not fall into that trap. Democratic donors are giving money to him because, err...they're Democratic donors. It's what they do. That Obama managed to raise "about three times the amount of his GOP rivals" does not signify that he is about three times as popular with the public.

posted by Gabriel Malor at 07:25 AM

| Access Comments