Sunday, August 5, 2012

Why the Slow Trickle of Republican Fundraising dollars?

It’s no secret that the Democratic Party is far exceeding many of the Republican candidates in the fundraising realm. From President Obama’s high priced soirees to support from Hollywood’s A list, the GOP is struggling to keep up. However in politics, numbers in the bank don’t always equal voters in the poll booths.
So with a low approval rating, a poor economy and a low chance of winning back the House, how in the world are the Democrats able to create such a money making machine?

First of all, the house GOP majority wants to drastically cut federal spending but “cuts to federal spending are a hindrance to healthy fundraising – especially when it comes to picking the pockets of the K Street donors and interest groups who depend on federal dollars,” explain Alex Isenstadt and David Catanese on HamptonRoads.com.

Secondly, House Minority Leader Nancy Palosi is an amazing fundraiser. Since January Pelosi has held 262 fundraising events in 35 cities and two territories, which have raised more than $24.4 million for House Democrats.

Next, one third of the Republican conference is comprised of first termers. Many of them don’t have the capitol that seasoned members do or they are concerned about their reelection bids and are waiting it out a bit. Also, there’s only so much money to go around: do the big donors give to GOP power house committees or to independent groups?

Finally, there are 17 Democratic incumbents – more than twice the number that the GOP must defend. That means there are a lot of incumbents who already have connections and know which doors to knock on.

“Republicans, meanwhile, have a collection of competitive and unsettled GOP fields that are keeping donors on the sidelines. The party is still searching for clear Senate frontrunners in Missouri, Florida and Wisconsin – each which currently has at least three GOPers vying for the nomination,” examines Isenstadt and Catanese.
So will the Republican Party be able to compete in the fundraising arena or will their lagging numbers be a minor setback once the ballots are counted? Like with most conundrums, only time will tell.

For more information about this topic, click here: http://bit.ly/ptXOr1

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