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Former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty remains little-known beyond his home state, but he has begun to line up wealthy donors, a critical constituency. Even as he draws low single-digit support in early polls, Mr. Pawlenty has amassed a substantial roster of well-connected GOP donors and fund-raisers in his quest for the Republican presidential nomination. Their preference for Mr. Pawlenty could pose a challenge to his GOP rival, Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who has used experience as a 2008 candidate and background as a private-equity investor to build what is widely regarded as the largest network of high-impact fund-raisers...

Texan and super-conservative Bob Perry formally endorsed Brian Klock for the Texas Congressional seat in CD-22. A Republican candidate for the District 22 congressional seat will be getting a lot of attention today with a very unique campaign ad. klockforcongress.orgIt's yet to be seen just whether it's negative or in his favor. Now in the private sector, Brian Klock remains a commander in the US Navy Reserve. He's an underdog candidate trying to gain new ground. Later Monday, his campaign will unveil a billboard (pictured above) on the Southwest Freeway near Fountainview. It shows crosshairs trained on downtown Houston, it...

WASHINGTON -- The Republican donor who helped bankroll the Swift Boat attacks on Democratic Sen. John Kerry's war record has given $5 million to a new group targeting Democratic candidates. Bob J. Perry, a Texas homebuilder with close ties to White House adviser Karl Rove and former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, recently made the hefty donations to the Economic Freedom Fund, a newly created California group. The group is a so-called 527 that is not subject to conventional campaign finance restrictions and can spend unlimited amounts on election advocacy, similar to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. In the...

Dec. 13 issue - In the closing weeks of the campaign, a reclusive Texas home builder pumped nearly $7 million into two "independent" political groups to help finance TV ads against John Kerry. The builder, Robert Perry of Houston, got attention in August when he gave $200,000 in seed money for the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth—the so-called 527 group that attacked Kerry's war record. Campaign records examined by NEWSWEEK show that, in October alone, Perry gave $3.8 million more to the Swift Boat vets and $3 million to Progress for America, a separate 527 organized by a GOP consultant...

[O]ne big loser was... McCain-Feingold campaign finance "reform".... Preliminary reports say a record $3.9 billion was spent on this year's Presidential and Congressional campaigns, 30% more than four years ago. Instead of severing the supposedly corrupting links between big money and politics, the reform's main effect has been merely to channel the cash through different political hands, and with less accountability. ...McCain-Feingold has succeeded in the narrow goal of staunching the flow of contributions from corporations, Big Labor and wealthy individuals to the two major political parties. Labor unions have turned more of their attention to voter registration and turnout....

NASSAU BAY, Texas - Nearly 40 protesters gathered Saturday at the suburban Houston home of the chief financial backer of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's television ad criticizing Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's military record. But the elusive Bob J. Perry didn't appear to be at his Nassau Bay home and didn't answer three doorbell rings by several veterans seeking to hand-deliver a letter asking him to stop supporting the swift boat veterans group. "We deeply resent what he's doing to the veterans," said Richard Zaner, a 70-year-old veteran of the Korean War who lives in the same suburb...

NASSAU BAY, Texas - Nearly 40 protesters gathered Saturday at the home of the chief financial backer of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, whose ads criticize Democrat John Kerry (news - web sites)'s military record. Bob J. Perry didn't appear to be at his suburban Houston home and didn't answer three doorbell rings by several veterans wanting to hand-deliver a letter asking him to stop supporting the group. "We deeply resent what he's doing to the veterans," said Richard Zaner, 70, a Korean War veteran who lives in the same suburb as Perry, a wealthy homebuilder. Kerry supporters chanted...

Posted on Sat, Aug. 28, 2004 Protest staged at home of anti-Kerry ad backer KRISTEN HAYS Associated Press NASSAU BAY, Texas - Nearly 40 protesters gathered Saturday at the suburban Houston home of the chief financial backer of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's television ad criticizing Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's military record. But the elusive Bob J. Perry didn't appear to be at his Nassau Bay home and didn't answer three doorbell rings by several veterans seeking to hand-deliver a letter asking him to stop supporting the swift boat veterans group. "We deeply resent what he's doing to...

When leftist billionaires such as George Soros, Stephen Bing, Peter Lewis and Ron Burkle donate to 527s and other groups trying to defeat President Bush, the media make, maybe, a passing reference to their Democrat party ties. For the most part, these donors are simply portrayed as "philanthropists." But when a wealthy conservative Republican donates to help the president, every donation he ever made and every Republican connection he ever had must be unearthed and splashed across the papers. After all, there must be a vast right-wing conspiracy at work. Take, for instance, Texas homebuilder Robert J. "Bob" Perry, who...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A wealthy Texan and prolific Republican donor is helping bankroll a television ad assailing Democrat John Kerry's decorated military record in the Vietnam War. Houston homebuilder Bob J. Perry has donated at least $100,000 to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a suburban Washington-based group airing a new ad in which Vietnam veterans who served on swift boats accuse the Democratic presidential nominee of lying about his war record. The group bought $500,000 of airtime for the 60-second ad to air in the battleground states of Wisconsin, Ohio and West Virginia. The effort is reminiscent of a 2000...

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A wealthy Texan and prolific Republican donor is helping bankroll a television ad assailing Democrat John Kerry's decorated military record in the Vietnam War. Houston homebuilder Bob J. Perry has donated at least $100,000 to Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, a suburban Washington-based group airing a new ad in which Vietnam veterans who served on swiftboats accuse the Democratic presidential nominee of lying about his war record. The group bought $500,000 of airtime for the 60-second ad to air in the battleground states of Wisconsin, Ohio and West Virginia. The effort is reminiscent of a 2000 effort...