It is not just Pelosi who is being threatened by top Clinton donors, Howard Dean is as well.
This is alarming, but maybe it is good we are finding out about it.
Top Hillary Donor Directly Pressures Dean: "Exercise Some Leadership" On Florida And MichiganHere are details on Patricof, but other large Florida donors are threatening Dean with funds being withheld.
In an interview with Election Central, venture capitalist Alan Patricof, a member of Hillary's finance committee and one of the Democratic Party's most influential fundraisers, said that he'd privately urged Dean to do more to get the Florida and Michigan delegations seated -- something that's crucial to the Hillary camp's hopes of closing the gap with Obama.
"I've expressed to Dean my feeling that it's critical that this matter be resolved on a timely basis," Patricof says. "The voters in Florida and Michgan cannot be disenfranchised."
"He's got to exercise some leadership, and the sooner, the better," Patricof continued. "This is a party issue. We cannot afford to alienate this large a voting population in two very important states."
That such an influential fundraiser is unhappy with the DNC could prove problematic, since the DNC of course relies on such figures to keep the money flowing in.
Here are two others from Florida who threatened the DNC with withholding funds, and TPM mentions them as well.
Pushing to seat the Florida delegates, at least one top Clinton fund-raiser, Paul Cejas, a Miami businessman who has given the Democratic National Committee $63,500 since 2003, has demanded Democratic officials return his 2007 contribution of $28,500, which they have agreed to do.
“If you’re not going to count my vote, I’m not going to give you my money,” said Mr. Cejas, who was the United States ambassador to Belgium from 1998 to 2001.
Christopher Korge, a Florida real estate developer who is another top fund-raiser for Mrs. Clinton, held an event last year in his home that brought in about $140,000 for the national party, which was set aside in a special account for the general election battle in Florida. But he told committee officials this week that if Florida’s delegate conundrum was not settled satisfactorily he would be asking for the money back.
“If we do not resolve this issue,” Mr. Korge said, “I think it’s safe to say there will be a request for a return of $140,000.”
Donors threatening Dean with getting money back.Trying to hurt the DNC fundraising has been the tactic of Florida's Democratic leaders as well. They started it the day after they voted 115 to 1 for the early primary date.
Florida DEC leaders sent emails saying to stop donations to Dean's DNCFor what it is worth, I am passing on the latest from the FL DEC Chairs Assn....
_______
________
-----Original Message-----
Subject: Money Talks
Following is what I sent out to my local blast with a forward of the FDP newsletter...It might be something you may want to encourage...
Fellow Democrats,
Concerning some of the comments I have been getting about the Democratic candidates signing the 4 state Pledge (NO campaigning in Florida before Jan 29th), I am suggesting that if your are, or were, planning on sending a check to your presidential candidate of choice, send a check to the FDP instead!
Several substantial fundraisers who have historically given to the DNC are giving to the FDP instead. That's a start. In addition, several Democrats who had endorsed candidates are withdrawing their endorsements. Those endorsements usually come with contributions, which are being withheld also.
The Nation article called The Dean Legacy reported that Hillary was setting up her own campaign structure, sort of a shadow DNC.
The Dean LegacyA few months earlier, The New Republic had reported that Clinton's camp was "laying the groundwork to circumvent the DNC in the event that Clinton wins the nomination." This shadow DNC had a number of integral parts: adviser Harold Ickes would develop state-of-the-art technology to help Clinton reach prospective voters; EMILY's List and Clinton's allies in organized labor would launch an unprecedented effort to turn out supporters, especially women voters; former DNC chair Terry McAuliffe would raise untold sums from wealthy donors and the business community; and communications honcho Howard Wolfson would direct an unrelenting war room. Ever since 1992 the Clintons had used the DNC as an outpost for raising money from big donors, and funding candidates had taken precedence over nurturing progressive organizers. That model would continue into '08. Dean could remain at the DNC as a figurehead but only if he stayed in line.
I believe that article to be totally true. We know now that Obama is using the DNC voter list and building it up in return to benefit the party. We suspect that Hillary is using Ickes' Catalist, as we know she is using a private list.
These threats needs the light of day. It is in effect trying to buy the nomination by threatening the chairman to financially destroy his committee.
Now even more shocking....we find out that top Clinton and party donors are likewise theatening Nancy Pelosi over her stance about superdelegates.
Top Clinton Backers Threaten PelosiThere are some of the same names on both lists...those threatening Dean over Florida, and those threatening Pelosi. One of the ones that really surprises me is Maureen White, the former finance director of the DNC..I think she resigned last year.
Clinton Fat Cats Hiss at PelosiBut a brouhaha has erupted over recent comments made by Pelosi on "This Week with George Stephanopoulos", when Pelosi, who will chair the Democratic National Convention, seemed to give a boost to the campaign of Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., by saying "If the votes of the superdelegates overturn what's happened in the elections, it would be harmful to the Democratic Party."
Taking umbrage, a list of big Democratic donors who support the campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., have written a letter to Pelosi (subsequently released to the press) pointing out that "Several states and millions of Democratic voters have not yet had a chance to cast their votes" and arguing "None of us should make declarative statements that diminish the importance of their voices and their votes. We are writing to say we believe your remarks on ABC News This Week on March 16th did just that.
"During your appearance, you suggested super-delegates have an obligation to support the candidate who leads in the pledged delegate count as of June 3rd , whether that lead be by 500 delegates or 2. This is an untenable position that runs counter to the party’s intent in establishing super-delegates in 1984…"
Then the donors -- Marc Aronchick, Clarence Avant, Susie Tompkins Buell, Sim Farar, Robert L. Johnson, Chris Korge, Marc and Cathy Lasry, Hassan Nemazee, Alan and Susan Patricof, JB Pritzker, Amy Rao, Lynn de Rothschild, Haim Saban, Bernard Schwartz, Stanley S. Shuman, Jay Snyder, Maureen White and Steven Rattner -- reminded Pelosi that they have given generously to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which helps fund Democratic House races.
We are now seeing in full living color how the big money has controlled the party.
There is a rather sad quote from an article at the National Journal. It makes a point in that one section that I have tried many times to make here among laughter and derision at Dean's efforts to change the party.
Dean is credited with raising more money than any previous DNC chairman, including McAuliffe, in the post-election period that followed Kerry's defeat in 2004. The DNC raised more than $51 million in 2005, considered a record for a non-election year. That was a 20 percent increase over 2003, according to the DNC. Dean introduced "Democracy Bonds" as a way to spur recurring, monthly donations from small contributors. And the DNC encourages matching donations from the grassroots to bring in first-time givers through the Internet. Both initiatives are considered more "friend-raisers" than sources of big dollars.
One puzzling aspect of the chairman's tenure is why the Net-roots boosters who injected rocket fuel into Dean's presidential campaign have been cool to the idea of pouring money into the national party's coffers. "I'm absolutely flummoxed by that," Fowler says. "A lot of them have abandoned him.Dr. RorschachWe are seeing it now coming to a full boil. Big money versus small donors. All bets are off now who wins.
I would have had no doubt who the winner would be if Howard Dean's dream of one million donors giving 20 dollars a month had come true for the party itself. At least it came through to fuel the Obama campaign. That's a positive thing.
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