Despite a heavy policy load that includes shepherding the Democrats' health care overhaul through the Senate, Connecticut Sen. Christopher J. Dodd somehow found time to conduct a good deal of fundraising over the past three months. The five-term incumbent announced Monday that he raised $1.2 million in the second quarter, besting his first quarter total of $1 million and leading all comers is what is expected to be a heavily contested 2010 race.
Campaign manager Jay Howser, however, underscored in a statement that "unlike so many of his competitors," Dodd's "fundraising took a back seat to his primary job: working for the people of Connecticut in the U.S. Senate" on issues like consumer protection, health care and the overhaul of the financial regulatory system.
Dodd's campaign boasted that the senator "received more individual donations from Connecticut than any other state," after coming under criticism when its first-quarter fundraising report revealed just five Connecticut residents donated. The campaign also counted 1,700 small-dollar donors who contributed $200 or less, but did not release details on how much money it raised from large donors or political action committees. Dodd raised more than 40 percent of his contributions from PACs in the first quarter, with finance industry, health care and labor committees leading the way.
As expected, Dodd enjoys an early financial edge over his three declared Republican challengers. The establishment choice, former Rep. Rob Simmons, announced last week he raised $753,000 from supporters in 49 states, but Tom Foley, a former ambassador to Ireland and fundraiser for George W. Bush, stole most of the GOP thunder with an impressive $530,000 haul in just under a month since he announced his candidacy. In a statement, Foley's campaign manager, Greg Keller, said it is "significant that most of the money we raised in June came from Connecticut, unlike Chris Dodd whose fundraising last quarter came almost exclusively from outside Connecticut."
State Sen. Sam Caligiuri told the Harford Courant he raised approximately $125,000 since declaring his candidacy March 31. Caligiuri, however, said he had only been focused on fundraising for the last month, after the state Senate session concluded.
To see how the 2010 Senate races are shaping up, check out the CQ Politics' election map.
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[The campaign also counted 1,700 small-dollar donors who contributed $200 or less, but did not release details on how much money it raised from large donors or political action committees.]
Why, pray tell? Could it be that the list would include more of Dodd's banker and real-estate buddies? This good fundraising news will become a double-edged sword.
Posted by: NObama
| July 14, 2009 1:53 PM
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