Cyrena:

Are you deliberately obtuse?  Of COURSE I rounded off the numbers.  Some were rounded down ($5.2 million became $5 million) and some were rounded up ($5.8 million became $6 mllion).  So what?

The point is that Obama has taken as much “special interest” money as Hillary, and that special interest money represents a FAR greater percentage of their overall total intake than lobby or PAC money, which you and others have harped on.

And I continue to bring this up because Obama rails against “special interests” more than any other candidate.  So it is VERY relevant to the discussion.

Peace.

Well Maani,

You’ve posted these ‘figures’ about 287.3 times, and I’m clearly not sure what your aim is, but I think you’re spinning your wheels.

In reality, these ‘statistics’ come across as bogus to anybody that actually deals with statistical research anyway. Nice round numbers across all the columns, with the one small salute to the .5 in the Health Industries category. No breakdown at all, for any of the entities that these categories allegedly represent.

Move on Maani. You’ve beat this pony to death, and never even got any mileage out of it.

Cyrena:

We may be ONE “special interest” (and of course the most important one), but we are not the only one. In addition to taking more money from the energy industry (~$5 million) than any other candidate (in either party), here is a short list of how much Obama has taken from other “special interests” (and, yes, Hillary has taken just as much, though in diffeent amounts from the various interests):

Legal/Law Firms: $11 million
Securities/Investments: $6 million
Education: $4 million
Real Estate: $3 million
Business/Finance: $5 million
Health Industries: $2.5 million

It is instructive to note that, while he harps on “lobby” and “PAC” money, the above special interests represent a FAR greater amount.  For example, Obama took in ~$150 million total.  Of that, he took no lobby money and about $4,000 in PAC money.  A truly negligible percent of $150 million.  However, just the numbers above (which do not include other special interests, such as telecomm, etc.) represent ~$36 million - a MAJOR percentage of the total $150 million.  [N.B.  Hillary’s numbers are similar; though she took in ~$800,000 in lobby money and $40,000 in PAC money, these, again, are negligible vis-a-vis $150 million.]

So anyone who thinks that Obama raised ~150 million from $10, $25 and $100 contributions ha got to stop smoking crack and get back to the real world.

Peace.

Bottom-Up strategy is a winner! Appreciate the words, Cyrena

I dunno Aegrus…

You know, I’m generally a real ‘play by the rules’ type lady. But, the GOP has absolutely NO recognition of ‘principles, integrity,character, or any thing even close). Money is the ONLY thing they are about, and they’ve been stealing our blood and treasure, for far too long now.

LOOPHOLES? I say let Obama collect all the money he wants...FROM US. It’s never ‘play by the rules’ with the GOP, until their losing.

Same with George. That’s what he did all though Yale, instead of the standard thing. He played the “World Domination” board game. (not unlike Monopoly) and he’d harass his colleagues, (when they were trying to study) and always insist on either extending the game (past the original rules) or otherwise changing them, if he was losing.

So, Obama has managed to collect the bulk of his money so far, (contrary to the lies of certain posters here) through basically nickle and dime type donations, from a huge majority of the people. And, because this thing started SOOOO early, (is it over yet?) he’s had a long time.

The average supporter, even those at the bottom of the chain, manage to work in anywhere between $15.00 and $35.00 a month. Now of course the baskets may be coming up a tad bit short at Sunday services, but poor folk know how to stretch the ever shrinking dollar. We’re used to it.

So, that has turned out well for Barack, far better than I ever expected. The larger contributions from celebrities and other rich folks certainly helps as well.

But at the end of the day, he’s done well by small contributions from far larger numbers of people. I’d also say that he hasn’t needed to spend his campaign funds in the standard way. Most of political candidates pay their campaign workers, and pay their expenses, and they travel at a relatively top dollar. (by air, and they stay in hotels, and they have to eat).

I learned from personal experience that Obama’s campaign is MOSTLY accomplished via volunteers. If they can’t travel, they work the phones and the Internet. If they do travel, they team up ‘car pools’. Housing is provided in by other volunteers who have space in whatever the cities are.

It has been, in a few short words, an AMAZING organized effort. Reminds me of the 60’s, when folks would board a bus, or do whatever it took. And, $5.00 here, or $20.00 there, IF IS IS SUSTAINED...makes all the difference in the world. I’m not kidding, these folks MAKE IT WORK!!

So, that’s why he’s been able to use his money on the stuff that can’t be ‘volunteered’. Like TV air time or whatever.

So, much of his campaign has been organized by volunteers, and it’s been doable because of organization, and a ‘spreading of the load’. People do what they can, and it works because the load is balanced. There are also far more ‘jobless’ people now, so it’s not like they don’t have time. Donate a week, or donate a weekend, or donate a few days in-between. Got kids? Stay home with ‘em and work the phones.

And, I’d say that’s ‘principled’ enough for me. The naysayers call them a cooning cult, or worse. But guess what? That’s what works! It gives people a sense of having a part in their own destiny and survival.

So, if he decides this is better than ‘public financing’ I say the hell with McCain. He can have Obama’s share of that as well. How much is $3.00 on a tax return anyway, when folks don’t even have enough income to file one?

It’s DEFINITELY not enough to run a successful campaign in this day and time.

Besides, the GOP and the neoconners have been using our money to enrich themselves for decades. Time for us to use our resources to enrich ourselves.

They only care about a ‘level playing field’ when it is no longer tilted in their favor. 

The ‘haves’ have had it all, until one day they looked up, and their ‘own’ had taken their stuff TOO! Whoops!They never saw it coming.

Now it’s time for the ‘have nots’ to pool our resources.