Obama raises $66 million in August
Posted: Sunday, September 14, 2008 10:10 AM by Mark Murray
From NBC's Mark Murray
A New York Times piece last Tuesday suggested that the Obama campaign's fundraising operation was struggling to reach its ambitious fundraising goals.
Well, think again.
NBC News has learned that Obama raised $66 million in August -- his biggest monthly haul of the campaign, which surpasses the more than $55 million the campaign raised in February. The Obama camp also notes that it added an additional 500,000 donors to its fundraising base.
By comparison, McCain raised at least $47 million in August, which also amounted to his biggest money month. Since the GOP convention, however, the Republican presidential nominee must now rely on the $84 million he received from the federal government.
Obama bypassed those federal funds, so he is free to raise and spend as much money as he can get his hands on.
*** UPDATE *** The Obama camp has just issued a press release on its August haul, which notes that the campaign had more than $77 million in the bank as of September 1, and that more than 2.5 million people have now contributed to the Obama campaign.
The release: "Senator Barack Obama’s campaign announced today that more than half a million new donors contributed to the Obama campaign during the month of August, bringing the total raised for the month to over $66 million and the cash on hand to more than $77 million. More than 2.5 million people have contributed to the campaign."
"'John McCain says that he’ll take on the special interests and lobbyists, but McCain can’t fix a problem he’s been part of for three decades. The 500,000 new donors to the Obama campaign demonstrate just how strongly the American people are looking to kick the special interests out and change Washington. We are proud of the millions of volunteers and more than 2.5 million donors to the Obama campaign who are contributing to help us deliver the change we need instead of letting John McCain just continue the same failed Bush policies while middle class Americans struggle,' said David Plouffe, campaign manager of Obama for America."
