Free Republic

How did the Republican Party become so splintered and so infused with hard-line conservatives? Don't blame redistricting. Don't chalk it up to anti-Obama fervor.Republicans have become an unruly bunch of scorched-earth conservatives because the Tea Party smashed the business lobby's monopoly on GOP fundraising.Here's a story of where the GOP used to be:Back in 2006, I asked a couple of conservative Republican congressmen to give blurbs for my book on corporate welfare. “My boss loves the book,” one of their top aides said, “but we’re not going to put his name on it." Why not, I asked. "Who do you...

This story is just perfect — particularly in light of the party’s endemic debt denialism, and the personal financial straits of its chairwoman: There’s another budget crisis in Washington, and it’s unfolding inside the Democratic party. The Democratic National Committee remains so deeply in the hole from spending in the last election that it is struggling to pay its own vendors.It is a highly unusual state of affairs for a national party — especially one that can deploy the President as its fundraiser-in-chief – and it speaks to the quiet but serious organizational problems the party has yet to address...

RedState Readers, there was a time when we could ask you to open your wallets for solid candidates and within hours goals would be met. We did that recently with Ken Cuccinelli in Virginia and you showed just how quickly you could raise money. But people still think you guys are not as engaged as you once were. So I have a challenge for you this morning — show the world conservatives are not disengaged. But more importantly, show the world you’ll do what it takes to fund reinforcements for Ted Cruz in the United States Senate. There are two...

Dear GOP, You've pulled the football away from us for the last time. From now on, my default preference in ANY election is no longer Republican. I will vote for select individuals whom I think I can trust, not who feed me a line of B.S. and then back away when safely ensconced in office. No yard signs. No contributions. No responding to polls. No personal campaigning among family and friends. No more holding my nose to vote for a moderate, RINO or 'the-lesser-of-two-evils'. I did that in an effort to avoid what I considered the worst-possible candidate for President...

The Democrats’ one best hope at a competitive Senate race in Georgia is already exhibiting signs of weakness. Since her July announcement, Michelle Nunn’s nascent campaign has sought branding grounded in entrenched Georgia political roots, thanks to her famous father, while ensuring daylight between party and president. The Points of Light CEO made no mention of party affiliation in a campaign announcement email, and a two-week tour across the state, dubbed “What Washington Can Learn From Georgia,” appeared more akin to her career in nonprofits than a show of political force. Yet an increasing slew of unforced errors is undermining...

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA. Terry McAuliffe just sent out a fundraising email. He clearly does not like RedState readers or me. Sounds like he is jealous of what we did for Ken Cuccinelli. Let me provide you the text: Do you recognize the name Erick Erickson? I wouldn’t be surprised if your answer is “no.” He’s an ultra-conservative blogger who popped up on the radar earlier this week when he called Texas State Senator Wendy Davis “Abortion Barbie,” a disgusting comment that’s not remotely out of his character. And then yesterday, Erickson raised $10,000 in...

BOSTON (AP) — She's yet to say whether she'll run, but a group working to support Hillary Rodham Clinton's prospective presidential bid raised more than $1 million in June alone. The Ready for Hillary super PAC has accepted donations exceeding $1.25 million since beginning to raise money in earnest this spring, an official with the group confirmed Tuesday. The figure includes more than $1 million last month as the operation begins to ramp up.

The American Association for Justice Convention at the Hilton in San Francisco this week has brought hords to town — hords of politicians. And we’re betting they’re not so much interested in AAJC’s panel discussions on more kinds of litigation than you ever thought possible — from Super Storm Sandy to bladder cancer, antidepressants to motorcycle lawsuits — than they are in being here in the Mother Lode of political fundraising. After all, the convention is conveniently located just a stone’s throw from Google, Facebook, Twitter, and all that Silicon Valley money — not to mention America’s Cup action that...

Alternate headline: “Because of amnesty push, Rubio rakes in $3 million in second-quarter fundraising.” Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio raised $3 million in the second quarter of 2013, a source familiar with a new Federal Election Commission finance report told Fox News.The second quarter total is 31 percent more than the amount Rubio raised in the first quarter and brings his total for the first half of 2013 to $5.28 million.That represents a strong showing for Rubio’s joint fundraising committee, the Rubio Victory Committee, which raises money for Rubio’s Reclaim America PAC and his re-election committee. How much of that...

While raising money for Bill Clinton (who signed the Defense of Marriage Act) in 1992, Rahm Emanuel proclaimed “Gays are the next Jews of fundraising.” I’m not 100 percent sure what he meant by that, but Democrats have certainly grabbed onto gay issues as a fundraising lever. Democrats today are using the gay marriage ruling as a way to raise money, my colleague Paul Bedard writes. Obama’s core network of fundraisers included many gay men and women who were also gay-marriage activists. I wrote on this after Obama spurred a fundraising boom by announcing his support for gay marriage.

Today, President Obama personally became re-involved in his former campaign organization's new incarnation Organizing for Action. On the same day he is scheduled to appear at two DCCC fundraisers in Chicago, the president of the United States sent the following email to OFA's mailing list, signed "Barack": Friend -- This is an experiment. Organizing for Action isn't like any other organization. It's based in Chicago, not Washington, and its task is to help restore the balance of power in government. We've seen that a bottom-up movement of passionate people can still win an election in the era of big campaign...

(Reuters) - With the White House already reeling from three major controversies, some Republican lawmakers are zeroing in on what they perceive is another possible scandal tied to President Barack Obama's landmark health reform law just as it nears implementation. On top of the troubles the administration is facing over its handling of the attack on the Benghazi mission, the Internal Revenue Service's targeting of conservative groups, and the Justice Department's seizure of Associated Press phone records, Republicans hope to target Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. They are questioning her soliciting of funds on behalf of a non-profit...

President Barack Obama will star at an “intimate” $32,400 per head June 6 fundraising dinner and discussion in the Portola Valley home of star Silicon Valley venture capitalist Vinod Khosla and his wife, Neeru, according to the invite obtained by the Chronicle. The dinner is one of two events in Peninsula private homes on Obama’s upcoming fundraising swing here, which benefits the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. In addition to the Khosla home dinner, Obama will also attend an earlier reception in the home of Marci and Mike McCue of Palo Alto. McCue co-founded Flipboard, and serves as its CEO. Senator...

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) on Thursday defended the Obama administration’s move to solicit private donations to implement ObamaCare, arguing that the government has a responsibility to help beneficiaries enroll under the law. Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of the Health and Human Services Department, has come under fire from Republicans for asking some prominent healthcare groups for financial help in executing the central elements of President Obama's healthcare reform law, which are slated to take effect within the next year. But Pelosi, who shepherded the proposal through the House, said educating the public on the intricacies of the complex law...

"As long as we've got to fight to make sure women have access to quality, affordable health care, and as long as we've got to fight to protect a woman's right to make her own choices about her own health, I want you to know that you've also got a president who's going to be right there with you, fighting every step of the way," said Obama. "Thank you, Planned Parenthood. God bless you."

ATHERTON (CBS SF) – The town of Atherton is sending a bill to the White House, asking the Obama Administration to pay up after a fundraising visit earlier this month. On April 4th, President Obama attended a morning brunch hosted by Liz Simons and Mark Heising, then a luncheon at the home of Marcia and John Goldman. Those stops were to benefit the Democratic National Committee. Town leaders want someone to pick up the nearly $8,000 tab for police and other security services required during the visit. . .

“Spend a Day With President Clinton Sweepstakes.” And so heralds an announcement for a new fundraiser sponsored by the Arkansas-based William J. Clinton Foundation, under way until April 12. The big prize does includes round-trip coach airfare, hotel accommodations and “the opportunity to spend the day with President Clinton” in New York City for two people. Will the winners tour popular Big Apple sites and say, lunch with former Mr. Clinton at the Plaza Hotel? Details are not yet available. “Timing for the trip and the time with President Clinton will be determined at the sole discretion of the Foundation....

Easter Sunday is not a day of rest for the Democrats' moneychangers. At least three top party officials dispatched fundraising emails Sunday in their bid to reach loyal Democrats in between church and Easter dinner. It's just the latest sign that politics and fundraising have become as regular as shopping at Sears or Walmart, which also open on Easter. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee Sunday morning sent out an updated fundraising note from House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi that didn't even mention Easter. "We could really do this! If we can hit 200,000 donations before tonight's FEC deadline, it would...

Link "Pakistan told Indian officials to look into all aspects, including an LTTE or Al-Qaeda connection. Pakistan also informed India that some of the terrorists appeared to be South Indians and looked like LTTE cadres. India investigated every angle," the official said. London's Pakistani High Commissioner in an interview told BBC over the weekend that some of the terrorists looked very much like South Indians. From Sir Lanka Ministry of Defence ....... A little known terror outfit "Deccan Mujahideen" has claimed responsibility for the attacks. Anti-terrorist operations are continuing as Indian security forces take on the formidable mission to...

About 200 donors on the email distribution list for Karl Rove's group "American Crossroads" may be receiving an interesting message Thursday: Don't donate to American Crossroads. Conservative activist Brent Bozell, chairman of the group ForAmerica, obtained the distribution list and plans to send a letter blasting Crossroads' role in last year's election and the creation of its new independent group for the 2014 mid-term elections. Rove, the former top political adviser to President George W. Bush, generated strong pushback from tea party groups earlier this year when he announced the formation of another offshoot, "Conservative Victory Project," dedicated to helping...