Jun 24 2008
Does it matter that Obama’s rejecting public funds?
This image is directly from Barack Obama’s official website.
Barack Obama has become the first major-party candidate to opt out of public financing since Watergate.
It’s no big surprise. When it comes to fund-raising, Obama is a virtual ATM machine. Candidates who take public financing get about $85 million to spend in the 2 months before the general election. But, if Obama can tap into the 1.5 million donors who contributed to him during the primaries along with Hillary Clinton’s donors, some predict he could raise as much as $500 million – which would put him at a tremendous advantage over John McCain, who says he’ll take public financing.
Experts say Obama could use this money to run a national ad campaign similar to marketing drives run by companies like McDonald’s and Nike. He’ll also be able to compete in Republican states, where the GOP rarely gets competition.
The downside for Obama is he’s opened himself up to charges of hypocrisy. Last year he vowed to work with the Republican nominee to “preserve a publicly financed general election.” And he’s now drawing fire from both friends and foes for this change of heart.
McCain lashed out at Obama, saying he’s gone back on his word. Although campaign finance isn’t a top issue for voters, the McCain camp is pouncing on this as an issue of trust as well as evidence that Obama doesn’t really represent a new kind of politics.
Watchdog groups are also disappointed with Obama’s decision, and Senator Russ Feingold, who has co-sponsored legislation with Obama to change the public finance system – is calling his decision “a mistake.”
Here’s my question to you: How much does it matter that Barack Obama is opting out of public campaign financing?
One Response to “Does it matter that Obama’s rejecting public funds?”
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It doesn’t matter much to me AT ALL. I think Obama is the candidate to criticize in this race so either way he can’t win. He has to make his decisions and stick by them. I was talking to a friend yesterday that said that he donates WEEKLY to Obama’s campaign. Amazing. Maybe his decision was based on statistics like that: many of his supporters lend continuously and therefore deletes the need for public financing. My two cents.
Great blog!
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