Free Republic

This year, more than ever, a large number of Americans feel the urge to run for public office in order to affect positive improvements in their states and in their districts. Not all of these new candidates have previous campaign experience. Accordingly, they are often at a loss as to where to begin. Candidates need to focus on the most important aspects of their campaign. At the beginning, at least for candidates who do not have sufficient media experience or who are not relying solely on a ground war based strategy, fundraising is the lifeblood of their campaign. Even for...

Dear xxxx xxxxxx, The elections held Tuesday should open all of our eyes. Please meet the new Governor of Virginia: [The] " dynamic new trend of working women and feminists ... is ultimately detrimental to the family." You read that right -- the new Governor of Virginia thinks working women are "detrimental" to the family. If you're scared that it might get worse in 2010 -- and you should be -- well, I have a way you can help fight these right-wing extremists who'd like to take over our government. NOW is committed to making sure women's voices are heard...

After the salutory "Dear Friend", Michael Steele quickly endears me with the underlined warning of "Your immediate action is required." No, Mr. Steele, my immediate action is not required of you. Your immediate action is required of me, if you expect a Republican vote (much less a donation) ever again. Mr. Steele demands, with great urgency, an immediate response to his Push Poll questions, plus a donation, of course. Does Michael Steele know what's getting mailed out to former loyal Republicans in his name? If not, he is inept. If he does, he's more than inept. He is tone deaf....

A Democratic fundraising video on President Obama's political Web site shows an American flag mural being covered in graffiti and desecrated with slogans about health care reform. As a heart monitor beeps ominously in the background, a graffiti artist paints over the Stars and Stripes with phrases criticizing opposition to the Democratic legislation, including "profit over life" and the crossed-out words "death panel." The whole flag is eventually smeared with paint and blacked out. One of 20 finalists in the Democratic National Committee's "Health Reform Video Challenge," the video shows the Los Angeles-based graffiti artist "Saber" at work, according to...

The White House is not supposed to be a partisan political tool, but during the Clinton administration the President Clinton sold evenings in the Lincoln Bedroom to Democratic party and raised a total of $5.4 million for the Democratic National Committee during 1995 and 1996. New York Times reported that some Democratic fund-raisers say they explicitly sold invitations to White House coffees, arranging invitations for $50,000 to $100,000. "I think it is fair to say that there was an understanding that if we became a trustee member [a member of the Democratic National Committee's managing trustees program], there was going...

High-dollar fundraisers have been promised access to senior officials and use of White House facilities in exchange for thousands of dollars in donations, documents reveal. During his first nine months in office, President Obama has quietly rewarded scores of top Democratic donors with VIP access to the White House, private briefings with administration advisers and invitations to important speeches and town-hall meetings. High-dollar fundraisers have been promised access to senior White House officials in exchange for pledges to donate $30,400 personally or to bundle $300,000 in contributions ahead of the 2010 midterm elections, according to internal Democratic National Committee documents...

HOFFMAN, DOUGLAS Receipts $307,889 Individual $187,389 PAC $0 Party $18,500 Candidate $102,000 Other $0 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $234,843 $146,090 $430,400 10/14/2009 SCOZZAFAVA, DIERDRE K Receipts $250,206 Individual $120,442 PAC $103,891 Party $13,850 Candidate $12,000 Other $23 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $209,502 $81,407 $24,000 10/14/2009 OWENS, WILLIAM Receipts $503,297 Individual $320,654 PAC $161,050 Party $9,916 Candidate $11,677 Other $0 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $374,936 $256,721 $251,121 10/14/2009 Hoffman Cash $146,090 Debt $430,400 SCOZZAFAVA Cash $81,407 Debt $24,000 Owens Cash $256,721 Debt $251,121

Money talks. Wasn’t there, don’t know, didn’t have the grand to buy my way in. But that’s what is being reported today. At a $1000 a plate they were hoping to raise a cool mil from, ummm, uhhh, bankers and hedge fund managers. “We came very close to a Great Depression,” he said, adding that the United States must never again be so close to disaster because of the action of reckless investors. “Join us, don’t fight us,” said Obama, singling out the financial executives in the room. “Join us in passing what are necessary reforms. It is important for...

Conservative Party congressional candidate Doug Hoffman in upstate New York (the district borders Canada and Vermont) has less than 2 weeks to get out of 3rd place in the 3-candidate race. He needs money and organization. The Susan B. Anthony List organization, which backs pro-life women candidates, sent six staffers to help Hoffman in his race against Republican Dede Scozzafava and Democrat Bill Owens. It is spending $300,000 on his candidacy, the New York Daily News reported. Within 24 hours of Sarah Palin’s announcement that she backs the conservative, Hoffman raised $116,000 online — $210,000 for the week.

Dede Scozzafava, the GOP nominee in a key upcoming House special election, is running dangerously low on campaign cash, according to several GOP sources familiar with her spending and fundraising. While Scozzafava’s official fundraising numbers will not be known until next Thursday, the third-quarter Federal Election Commission reporting deadline, the GOP sources acknowledged to POLITICO that she’s unable to compete financially with her two opponents. Scozzafava supporters blame her cash crunch on the Washington Republican establishment, which they contend has not embraced her campaign enthusiastically. They specifically point to Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Steele, whose committee has been virtually...

HOFFMAN, DOUGLAS Receipts $307,889 Individual $187,389 PAC $0 Party $18,500 Candidate $102,000 Other $0 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $234,843 $146,090 $430,400 10/14/2009 SCOZZAFAVA, DIERDRE K Receipts $250,206 Individual $120,442 PAC $103,891 Party $13,850 Candidate $12,000 Other $23 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $209,502 $81,407 $24,000 10/14/2009 OWENS, WILLIAM Receipts $503,297 Individual $320,654 PAC $161,050 Party $9,916 Candidate $11,677 Other $0 Disbursements Cash on Hand Debt $374,936 $256,721 $251,121 10/14/2009

Plagued by his own plummeting polls and playing to empty seats at a high-roller Hub fund-raiser, President Obama acknowledged yesterday that his close friend and political alter ego Gov. Deval Patrick faces a rough road to re-election. “There really should be no doubt that this guy gets a second term. But let’s be honest. This is going to be a tough race,� Obama told a room barely half-full with 125 deep-pocketed Democrats who ponied up $6,000 for Patrick and the party. “Re-election is not a foregone conclusion because times are tough.� Reflecting those hard times, the swanky Westin Copley Place...

WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- After interrupting President Barack Obama's address to Congress on health care reform by shouting "You lie!," US Representative Joe Wilson received a formal reprimand from the House of Representatives. His actions also made his online fundraising campaign the target of a distributed denial-of service attack over the weekend, which sent his site and those of about 150 other Piryx (www.piryx.com) web hosting clients offline.

Republican Bob McDonnell entered the home stretch of the Virginia governor's race with a sizable cash lead over his opponent, despite spending equally with Democrat Creigh Deeds and raising only slightly more funds last month. McDonnell closed September with $4.5 million in the bank over Deeds' $2.7 million, giving him an advantage as both campaigns seek to inundate voters with television ads in the lead-up to the Nov. 3 election. The Republican nominee raised $3.8 million last month, about $300,000 more than Deeds. Both candidates spent about $5.1 million. The cash-on-hand disadvantage augurs poorly for a Democratic campaign lagging in...

The words "you lie!" earned Joe Wilson a resolution of disapproval on the House floor last month. But the outburst has certainly had its upside, netting him $2.7 million in third quarter political donations -- with most of the money raised after his Sept. 9 outburst, according to Federal Election Commission reports filed Thursday evening. Wilson's $2.7 million quarter is a fundraising anomaly -- better than many Senate candidates and even some presidential candidates could hope for. Democrats hope a simultaneous fundraising boost for Wilson’s challenger, Rob Miller, will position him to make a viable run next November. But Wilson’s...

George Pataki will be in Iowa next month to raise money for local Republicans. The former New York governor will be the headline speaker at a fundraising event on November 10th, according to Brian Kennedy, finance director for the Scott County Republican Party. The visit could boost speculation that Pataki is planning to run for the Republican party nomination in the 2012 election. Other potential GOP candidates, such as Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, will be at an event in Des Moines three days prior. Pataki spent time in Iowa during the 2008 presidential election; however, he did not seek the...

NEW YORK – Former Democratic fundraiser Norman Hsu was sentenced Tuesday to more than 24 years in prison by a judge who accused him of funding his fraud by manipulating the political process in a way that "strikes at the very core of our democracy." U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero sentenced the 58-year-old Hsu, who raised money for Hillary Rodham Clinton and others, to 20 years in prison for his guilty plea to fraud charges and another four years and four months in prison for his conviction at trial for breaking campaign finance laws. In a lengthy criticism of Hsu's...

NEW YORK -- A federal judge on Tuesday sentenced former Democratic fund-raiser Norman Hsu to more than 24 years in prison for illegally funneling tens of thousands of dollars to U.S. political candidates and for his role in a Ponzi scheme. The sentence of 292 months in prison, handed down in a U.S. District Court in Manhattan by Judge Victor Marrero, was less than the 30 years that the prosecution had requested. Before Judge Marrero announced the sentence, Mr. Hsu quietly told him: "I know apologizing will not make things better for anyone, but I would still like to apologize...

THIS IS A STORY ABOUT LIBERAL GRASSROOTS FUNDRAISING. THE CONSERVATIVE RESPONSE FOLLOWS. September 30 is the end of the fundraising quarter for federal candidates and, of course, everyone wants to report healthy numbers. To this end campaigns often cite the filing deadline in an attempt to motivate supporters to give one more time or give for the first time. This time they aren't alone. Artur Davis is also using the Sept. 30 deadline to encourage contributions even though he's running for Governor in 2010, not Congress. It's a smart move that reminds supporters time is passing and takes advantage of...

Let the Progressive Democrats dream their redistributed wealth commie dreams because, sooner or later, reality always comes back to lay some serious bite marks on their asses. Democratic political committees have seen a decline in their fundraising fortunes this year, a result of complacency among their rank-and-file donors and a de facto boycott by many of their wealthiest givers, who have been put off by the party's harsh rhetoric about big business. Those currently in power in the Democratic party are from its Progressive fringe and that makes for a lot of rousing class warfare rhetoric during a campaign but...

Democratic political committees have seen a decline in their fundraising fortunes this year, a result of complacency among their rank-and-file donors and a de facto boycott by many of their wealthiest givers, who have been put off by the party's harsh rhetoric about big business.

The Republican National Committee has sent a fundraising email to supporters tied to what it calls the "fanaticism" displayed in a video of New Jersey elementary-school students singing a song praising President Obama. (Watch it at left.) RNC Chair Michael Steele writes that the video shows "the indoctrination of our nation's greatest treasure -- our children." "Friend, this is the type of propaganda you would see in Stalin's Russia or Kim Jong Il's North Korea," Steele writes. "I never thought the day would come when I'd see it here in America." The video, which shows students learning songs praising Mr....

Democratic political committees have seen a decline in their fundraising fortunes this year, a result of complacency among their rank-and-file donors and a de facto boycott by many of their wealthiest givers, who have been put off by the party's harsh anti-business rhetoric. The trend is a marked reversal from recent history, in which Democrats have erased the GOP's long-standing fundraising advantage. In the first six months of 2009, Democratic campaign committees' receipts have dropped in comparison to the same period two years earlier. The vast majority of those declines were accounted for by the absence of large donors who,...

NFL owners, team officials, players and coaches have overwhelmingly favored Republicans with their political contributions, according to a study released Thursday by the Center for Responsive Politics. The report, which reviewed contributions dating back to 1989, found that combined contributions from players, owners and officials on 22 of the 32 National Football League teams have given more cash to Republicans than Democrats, and that several teams have given more than 90 percent of their contributions to the GOP. The San Diego Chargers blew away the rest of the field with $2,455,200 in total money contributed, with most of that coming...

SAN ANTONIO — Gov. Rick Perry embarked on a campaign fundraising swing Tuesday with former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, a longtime friend and Republican ally whose views on social issues are more closely allied with Perry's primary opponent, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison. Neither Perry or Giuliani, who Perry endorsed for president last year, discussed or even hinted at Perry's Republican primary battle with Hutchison during a news conference on border security at a San Antonio police station. Perry, Giuliani and Hutchison are all like-minded when it comes the border and fiscal policy. But Giuliani stands closer to...

Computerworld - A company providing online payment-processing services for U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) is back online after being disrupted by a distributed denial-of-service attack over the weekend. The attack on Piryx began Friday afternoon and lasted into the early hours of Saturday morning, temporarily disrupting a Wilson fundraising effort that was under way at that time, Piryx CEO Tom Serres said. It also knocked out services for about 150 other Piryx clients, he said. Piryx is a nonpartisan Austin-based start-up that provides services to help political candidates and nonprofits manage online campaigns and fundraising.

Did anyone else get a call from the RNC today asking for a contribution?

A source on Rep. Joe Wilson's campaign says his fundraising has broken $1 million -- and surpassed that of his Democratic rival, Rob Miller -- since his outburst of "You lie!" during President Obama's address to Congress Wednesday. The source said Wilson's current tally is $1,005,021 from 18,859 donations amid a high-profile campaign on the Drudge Report and elsewhere telling conservatives that Wilson is "under attack" for his willingness to take on Obama.

A source on Rep. Joe Wilson's campaign says his fundraising has broken $1 million -- and surpassed that of his Democratic rival, Rob Miller -- since his outburst of "You lie!" during President Obama's address to Congress Wednesday. The source said Wilson's current tally is $1,005,021 from 18,859 donations amid a high-profile campaign on the Drudge Report and elsewhere telling conservatives that Wilson is "under attack" for his willingness to take on Obama. Wilson, who initially apologized for his words, is now riding a reaction that has surpassed the liberal backlash to his words: Miller has raised less than $900,000,...

It Pays to tell the truth, but it REALLY pays (and saves as we will see later) to accurately point out when others are not. Enter stage RIGHT Rep. Joe Wilson of South Carolina who has recently broken the 1 million dollar mark in fundraising. Wilson campaign: Fundraising breaks $1 million, passes Miller The out pouring of support comes on the heels of one of the most "despicable, disrespectful and disgraceful" acts ever committed by an individual, anywhere at anytime. WARNING the video below contains graphic language and is not suitable for enlightened, science based, stage two thinkers:

A source on Rep. Joe Wilson's campaign says his fundraising has broken $1 million -- and surpassed that of his Democratic rival, Rob Miller -- since his outburst of "You lie!" during President Obama's address to Congress Wednesday. ---Snip--- Still, Wilson's success -- despite having been criticized by Republican leaders -- represents the power of the conservative grassroots to reward politicians who confront the White House in the sharpest terms.

With a political arms race in full force, Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) has raised almost $750,000 in less than 48 hours since his shout of "You lie!" to President Obama during the Wednesday address to Congress, almost matching the Internet-fueled haul of his likely Democratic opponent. A senior GOP official said Wilson, who apologized to White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel after the health-care speech but has since refused a more public apology, has turned his own previous sleepy campaign machine into an Web-friendly effort. Just as liberals have poured cash into the campaign of Rob Miller, who lost...

In the wake of the controversy Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) sparked by shouting “You lie!”....

The House Democrat campaign operation is using an outburst during President Obama's health speech to a joint session of Congress to make at least $100,000 in donations in the next 48 hours. As Obama delivered his Sept. 9 health-care speech and claimed his plan would not be provided to illegal aliens, Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., shouted, "You lie!" A video of the incident follows:

One might argue that a man who’s truly sorry for what he did wouldn’t be trying to make a buck off of it, but if the left’s going to monetize his outburst — replete with scolding about what an embarrassment he is from the national embarrassment that we call Joe Biden — I guess he has no choice. Here’s the donation page. As I write this, The Hill is oh so innocently wondering whether Wilson’s shouting might be due to the fact that he’s … some sort of speed freak. We’ve reached a very, very dark point.

Proof that one man’s loss is another man’s gain: in the hours following South Carolina’s GOP Rep. Joe Wilson’s “You lie!” outburst during President Barack Obama’s joint address to Congress Wednesday evening, his 2010 Democratic opponent has raised about $100,000 from 3,000 people, according to a spokeswoman for the House Democrats’ campaign operation. The Democratic grassroots immediately sprang in to action last night to aid Rob Miller, an Iraq War veteran who unsuccessfully challenged Wilson in 2008 and is seeking a rematch next year. “Defeating the man who yelled ‘liar’ at Obama: Good-bye Rep. Joe Wilson,” states ActBlue, which collects...

Despite the effects of an uncertain economy, contributions and pledges to the 44th annual Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon over Labor Day nonetheless totaled $60,481,231 million. MDA National Chairman and Telethon star Jerry Lewis said he was impressed by the show of support from Telethon viewers even during hard times. "These are very special people, and their money comes straight from the heart," Lewis said. "Right now, the only thing I can think of to say, other than thank you, thank you is, 'love conquers all.' So many people, everywhere, even with cares of their own, dug deep to show their...

Scammers pumping out emails that try to trick recipients into parting with large sums of cash are getting a helping hand from the Democratic National Committee. According to a researcher with anti-spam company Cloudmark, 419 fraudsters have been relaying a "significant" amount of messages through the democrats.org domain name. The abuse, which dates back at least to the beginning of this month, helps evade filters that internet service providers employ to block the messages."Unfortunately, because they're able to relay mail through the Democratic Party server, it does affect the Democratic Party's IP reputation, as well as their domain sending reputation,"...

Do you want Peter Schiff to run for Senate in Connecticut? If so, Peter has set a fundraising goal... http://www.schiff4senate.com

With the battle over ObamaCare heating up to white-hot temperatures -- which promise to become even hotter in the fall -- I became a little curious today to see who the heavy hitters are, donations-wise, to Democrats in their fight to keep all those un-American, well-dressed mobs currently invading August town halls across the country from seizing the reins of power in a coup d’état of astounding proportions. … Naturally, the top spot's occupied by our favorite group of folks; the lawyers. For 2008, they somehow managed to rub two nickels together -- to the tune of 126.8 million dollars...

Mitt Romney’s political committee in July spent $187,000 maintaining an impressive political infrastructure, but it raised only $178,000 — its worst monthly haul of the year, and the first time the committee has spent more than it raised. To be sure, fundraising tends to slow in the summer particularly in off years — but, by comparison, in June, Romney’s political action committee, Free and Strong America PAC, raised $299,000, and in May it brought in $455,000. The July figures come courtesy of a report filed recently with the Federal Election Commission by the PAC, which finished last month with $833,000...

Former eBay CEO outspends San Francisco mayor in gubernatorial campaign as wellMayor Gavin Newsom isn't as popular on Twitter as many suspected. The social-networking loving mayor is trailing far behind several of his fellow gubernatorial candidates in campaign contributions received, according to a new study. California's Fair Political Practices Commission released how much declared candidates for state offices, including governor, raised for their campaigns during the first six months of 2009. And the study shows Mayor Newsom is trailing the queen of campaign fundraising, Republican candidate Meg Whitman, by a huge margin. The former eBay CEO received $10,813,933 from Jan....

Dems: "We must stand against this tiny, vocal minority."

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi moves in a rarefied world of high society and high-level politics — and nothing underscores that fact quite like her plans for the August recess (AP photo composite by POLITICO). House Speaker Nancy Pelosi moves in a rarefied world of high society and high-level politics — and nothing underscores that fact quite like her plans for the August recess. Pelosi will spend next weekend quietly tending to top party donors and political allies at a series of private events in Northern California. The two-day “issues conference” starts next Friday night with a dinner for roughly 170...

UPDATE - The report is posted on the FEC website. It shows that in the first six months of 2009, HuckPAC raised $304,673, spent $325,435 on operations, contributed $11,155 total to 7 Federal candidates ($1,000 to Arkansas own Rick Crawford for Congress), and incurred $63,168 in debt. By comparison to the other two early contenders in 2012 Presidential GOP Race, Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC raised $1,924,373 and Palin’s SarahPAC raised $732,867 for the same time period.

"Republican-affiliated political action committees appear to be out-raising their Democratic counterparts by a nearly two-to-one margin, according to the latest campaign finance reports. A CQ MoneyLine analysis of PACs tied to lawmakers and candidates found that Republicans had raised more than $10 million during the first half of the year compared to the $5.5 million for Democrats" "The Republican PACs also hold an edge in cash on hand, with $6.8 million compared to the Democrats $5.2 million." 1. Romney’s Free and Strong America PAC — $1,924,375. 2. The conservative Democratic Blue Dog PAC — $1,106,887. 3. Every Republican Is Crucial,...

Newt Gingrich’s political group quietly pulled in an impressive $8.1 million in the first half of the year, a cash haul that enabled the former Speaker of the House to finance a robust political operation that includes at least 17 employees. A report filed Friday with the Internal Revenue Service shows that American Solutions for Winning the Future accepted at least $460,000 from oil interests in the first half of the year, after advancing offshore oil drilling as an issue during the 2008 campaign cycle, and $200,000 from the Workforce Fairness Institute, a business-backed group opposed to the Employee Free...

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Bill Clinton may no longer occupy the White House, but the abortion advocate can still make use of his fundraising prowess. Clinton penned an email fundraising pitch for the big pro-abortion group Emily's List that it sent out today to its members. The email focuses on the 2010 Congressional elections and Clinton asks abortion advocates to give Emily's List money to supports it efforts to keep pro-abortion stalwarts in control of the House. "We can't afford to lose our Democratic majority in 2010, and women -- our nation's most progressive force -- will be crucial to...

<p>Investigator: Palin May Have Violated Ethics Laws An independent investigator has found evidence that Gov. Sarah Palin may have violated ethics laws by accepting private donations to pay her legal debts.</p> <p>"All options are open in terms of legal remedies. It is a clear violation of Alaska law that Mr. Daniel explicitly reviewed with Ms. Chatman prior to her illegal actions. We will be contacting the appropriate authorities for review and action."</p>

"For years it has been clear to those who bear the brunt of criticism from human rights watchdogs like Amnesty and the U.N. Human Rights Council, that something is wrong with the international system aimed at exposing gross violations and war crimes," David Hazony writes at www. commentarymagazine.com..."But last week, one of these bodies was caught with its pants down. Two months ago, the Saudi-based newspaper Arab News described a fundraising event for Human Rights Watch held in the Saudi kingdom...where the organization not only petitioned the brutal elites for funding, but paraded the fact that they were doing battle...