Despite Uptick in Party Money, Democrats Still Trail (GOP - $405.7 million; Dems

The two major political parties have raised a combined $695 million for federal office elections this campaign cycle through June 30, according to a report released Monday by the Federal Election Commission.

Predictably, the Republicans — who control the White House, both chambers of Congress and a narrow majority of governorships — outraised the Democrats. The report, which analyzed campaign finance activity over the first 18 months of the 2005-06 cycle, showed that Republican Party committees at the federal, state and local level have raised $405.7 million (58 percent of the two-party total) in strictly regulated “hard” money, compared to the $289.3 million raised by Democratic Party committees.

But there is good news for the Democrats, in that they have narrowed the gap somewhat: Their 2005-06 receipts represent a 4 percent increase over a comparable period in the 2003-04 cycle, while the GOP committees collected 13 percent less.

The Republican National Committee (RNC) raised $168.2 million through June 30 — a 23 percent drop for the same point in 2004, when the committee was geared up for its effort to re-elect President Bush.

The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) — which is working in an unusually difficult political environment to stave off the net gain of 15 or more seats that the Democrats would need to take control of the House — also has raised less than at the similar point in the last cycle. The NRCC took in $102.9 million in the first 18 months of 2005-06, compared to $115.2 million in the first 18 months of 2003-04.

The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) has actually raised more in the first 18 months of this campaign cycle ($62.6 million) than it did over a similar period in the last cycle ($50.4 million), when the GOP enjoyed a net gain of four seats. But heavy early spending in this cycle has put the GOP committee at a disadvantage in remaining cash reserves to its partisan counterparts, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC).

The Democratic National Committee (DNC), like the RNC, has seen its numbers drop compared to the 2004 presidential election cycle. The DNC raised $90.5 million in the first 18 months of the 2005-06 cycle, compared to $125.4 million two years ago.

But this has been more than offset by big advances made by the party’s two congressional campaign committees. The DSCC — which is orchestrating the party’s uphill campaign for the net gain of at least six seats it needs to take over the Senate — posted receipts of $73 million in the first 18 months of 2005-06, compared to $49.3 million in the first 18 months of 2003-04.

The DSCC’s ramped-up fundraising has allowed the committee to reserve more than $25 million in television ad time to influence key Senate races, according to the Associated Press.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which is spearheading its party’s national House campaign, also has boosted its receipts handsomely — to $76.6 million raised this cycle from $56 million in 2003-04.

Tapping Incumbents The FEC report provided a useful chart detailing the sums of money that House members have transferred to their national parties’ campaign committees from their personal campaign accounts. Transfers such as these are unlimited by law.

To be sure, the party committees collect an overwhelming majority of their contributions from individual donors. But the FEC data indicated that House Democrats have stayed competitive with their Republican counterparts in fundraising in no small part because of the generosity of Democratic members of Congress.

These incumbents, according to the report, transferred $15.1 million to the DCCC this cycle, compared to the $7.9 million transferred to the NRCC by Republican members.

These totals do not include donations from members’ “leadership” political action committees, the dollar amounts of which are limited by law.

The biggest givers to the House campaign committees are members of the parties’ leadership, who have access to more campaign cash and who are expected to pony up at levels commensurate to their political and legislative clout.

Among Democrats, Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Maryland has transferred $570,000 to the DCCC via his own campaign committee. That was just ahead of the $535,000 transferred by Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi of California, who would stand to become Speaker should the Democrats win a majority of seats.

Other big givers to the DCCC include Massachusetts Democratic Sen. John Kerry ($500,000), who was the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee; DCCC chairman Rahm Emanuel, a House member from Illinois ($470,000); and House Democratic Caucus Chairman James E. Clyburn of South Carolina ($385,000), the third-ranking Democrat in the party hierarchy.

On the Republican side, the top giver was a veteran lawmaker who no longer serves in the House: Ohio Republican Rob Portman ($500,000), who vacated his House seat last year after Bush appointed him U.S. trade representative and who now is the White House budget director.

The next highest totals came from a pair of retiring senior Republicans who, like Portman, are no longer in need of surplus campaign funds: Reps. Bill Thomas of California ($330,000) and Michael G. Oxley of Ohio ($325,500).

Other leading incumbent donors to the NRCC included members who are seeking committee chairmanships in the 110th Congress, provided the GOP retains its majority: Louisiana Rep. Jim McCrery (news, bio, voting record) of Louisiana ($227,500), who is seeking to succeed Thomas as chairman of Ways and Means; Alabama Rep. Spencer Bachus (news, bio, voting record) ($186,000), who is vying to replace Oxley as head of the Financial Services Committee; and Florida Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (news, bio, voting record) ($170,000), who wants to succeed retiring Illinois Rep. Henry J. Hyde (news, bio, voting record) at the helm of the International Relations Committee.

The GOP totals do not include some big checks party leaders pledged since June 30 to the NRCC’s “Battleground” program, which helps fund campaign efforts in competitve districts. Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois and Majority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio each gave $550,000 last month; those sums will be reflected in future NRCC campaign reports.

Sans Soft Money While the impact of these partisan contributions on this year’s elections is of paramount interest, the FEC report also provides a measure of the impact of the campaign finance law overhaul that was enacted in 2002 and implemented for the 2004 elections — particularly that statute’s ban on unlimited “soft money” contributions to the national party committees.

The report showed that the six national party committees have together raised about $60 million less this cycle than at a similar point of the 2001-02 cycle, which was the last in which they were allowed to raise “soft money.”

The $574 million combined take by the six party committees this cycle compares to $633 million for the committees in the first 18 months of 2001-02. All three Republican committees and the DNC reported hard-money receipts this cycle that were less than the combined total of their hard- and soft-money receipts in the first 18 months of 2001-02.

The DSCC registered a small increase ($73 million from $70.3 million), while the DCCC’s $76.6 million cycle-to-date receipts are much greater than the $58.7 million in hard and soft money the committee reported collecting in the first 18 months of the 2001-02 cycle.

This article is so misleading it must be on purpose. One should never compare fund raising of presidential elections with off year elections...the comparisons are meaningless because the money is much bigger in presidential elections.

Notice they don't tell you about the DNC or any GOP committee in the last paragraph. The DNC raised about 116 million in soft dollars in 2002. The RNC raised 120 million. They both miss the money but this story implies the rats ain't hurting.

The GOP totals do not include some big checks party leaders pledged since June 30 to the NRCC’s “Battleground” program, which helps fund campaign efforts in competitive districts.

Here is how this shell game works. Because of CFR individuals can't give unlimited money to the party anymore, the rich fat-cat sends a check for $100,000 to the RNC/DNC the party puts it in the "Battleground" fund. They then call the donor and ask if they can give it to candidates a, b, c, and 50 other candidates? the donor says yes and the Party sends a check from donor to candidate.

See how that goes? The check goes to the Party and then to the candidate as a individual contribution so even though it smells, looks, and quacks like soft money it isn't really. So far the DNC has raised about 50 million in CFR authorized non-soft money and the RNC has raised 85 million in CFR authorized non-soft money.

And Dean has spent ALL the DNC HARD MONEY he raised so far. The dumb bastard distributed it very equally to all 50 state rat parties...dispite the impossibility of the rats winning in MS, or IN, or some other GOP stronghold. This may get him re-elected as DNC head by the state rat leadership, but it is awful political strategy. All he has left is the CFR authorized non-soft money. They also can't rely on big money from Soros and the 527s.

It is a good day to be a Republican.

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