Fundraising Gap Likely to Persist For Campaigns - McCain, Edwards Expect To Lag Behind Leaders

Source: Washington Post

Fundraising Gap Likely to Persist For Campaigns
McCain, Edwards Expect To Lag Behind Leaders

By Michael D. Shear and Anne E. Kornblut
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, June 23, 2007; A01



Twelve weeks ago, after raising less money than two other Republican candidates in the first three months of 2007, Sen. John McCain of Arizona, the early favorite for his party's presidential nomination, declared that it was his fault, said he hoped "to get better" at it and reorganized his finance team. This week he said it hasn't worked out too well, acknowledging that raising money is "very tough" and allowing that "we weren't going to win this campaign on money anyway."

On the Democratic side, former senator John Edwards of North Carolina had vowed that he, too, would improve on a weak first-quarter showing. But this week, Joe Trippi, a senior aide, e-mailed supporters with news that the campaign is only two-thirds of the way to its relatively modest fundraising goal.

Edwards and McCain are two prominent victims of the widening money gap between the front-runners and the rest of the field, a separation that will be apparent when the campaigns file their fundraising reports on the second quarter, which ends next Saturday.

Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) and Barack Obama (D-Ill.) are each expected to hit the $25 million mark -- at least -- for money raised since April 1, a feat that reflects their continuing ability to reach deep into their Democratic constituency. Among the Republicans, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney and former New York mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani are said to be repeating their impressive first-quarter takes.



Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/22/AR2007062202190.html?referrer=email

Some "frontrunner" he is.