$353k per person fundraiser. Are you really falling for that one?

[BainsBane]

We have claims that Clinton's ties to big money are exemplified through a fundraiser that supposedly charges $354k per person. Well, actually it doesn't. And it turns out that money doesn't go to the Clinton campaign at all, or to a superpac. It goes to the Clinton Victory fund with raises money for Democrats across the country. Here are the details.

For two seats at the head table with Clinton, George Clooney and his wife, attorney Amal Clooney, at an April 15 fundraiser, a couple must contribute or raise a whopping $353,400 — a huge ticket price for a hard-dollar fundraiser.

The Bay Area fundraiser, hosted at the home of venture capitalist Shervin Pishevar, is one of two events starring the Clooneys. On April 16, Clinton and the Clooneys will reunite at the Clooney Los Angeles mansion, where tickets cost $33,400 per person to dine at the table with one of Hollywood’s most glamorous couples.

Both events raise money for the Hillary Victory Fund. While the maximum donation to a presidential campaign is $2,700 for the primary elections (plus another $2,700 for the general), the Hillary Victory Fund can accept much larger contributions because it is a so-called joint fundraising committee that is comprised of multiple committees.

In addition to Hillary for America, which is Clinton’s main campaign committee, the Hillary Victory Fund also includes the Democratic National Committee and 32 state party committees.
The maximum donation to the DNC is $33,400 a year, while the state parties each can accept donations of $10,000 a year into their federal accounts.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2016/03/hillary-clinton-george-clooney-fundraiser-221207#ixzz45hJmDoBM
Follow us: @politico on Twitter | Politico on Facebook

Clinton can accept only $2700 from each person, provided they haven't already reached the maximum contribution to her campaign. The rest goes to state parties and Democrats across the country.


The MN Democratic Farmer Labor Party is included in that fund. Three of the five Democratic congresspeople in the state endorsed Sanders, but that money Clinton is raising will still go to them, especially Chris Nolan in the Arrowhead region who will face a tight race with the GOP challenger. So you keep attacking Hillary's efforts to raise money for the Democratic Party, including Bernie's superdelegates. Makes perfect sense.

That is what Bernie and his supporters are denouncing, fundraising for Democratic candidates across the country, including at least some of those who have endorsed Bernie. Do you suppose Bernie doesn't want those candidate to have campaign funds, or do you think he is trying to make political hay out of Clinton's efforts on behalf of the Democratic Party?

Now certainly the amount of money in political campaigns is horrendous, but it is really more horrendous for Clinton to raise money for herself and Democrats across the country than Bernie to raise money for his own campaign?

[Hoyt]

1. Thanks for setting the record straight. Hope those Democratic candidates across the country

benefit from the money Clinton is raising to get them elected. Maybe we need a chart of how much Clinton has raised for other candidates vs. Mr. Sanders.

[BainsBane]

2. $16 million to $0

As of the last report. Do you suppose she's buying Bernie's superdelegates for him.

[silvershadow]

4. Hopefully. nt

[NurseJackie]

33. That's just sad. Pathetically sad.

And very short-sighted. But... it's pretty much what I expect, so I'm not at all surprised.

[Human101948]

22. Then the DNC supports corporate candidates and loses seats in Congress...

while letting stronger, more liberal canddates beg for money.

This system is portrayed as such a great thing that Hillary is doing when it is actually just guaranteeing us more of the same old, same old.

[Surya Gayatri]

3. Good luck injecting a dose of reality into the disingenuous deceit.

They do NOT wish to deviate from their Hillary-Hate and will not believe anything that diverges from their chosen narrative.

[BainsBane]

5. I know

but I feel compelled to post it anyway.

I think the deception shows just how little they feel their candidate has to offer.

[Hortensis]

42. That last, yes. All the exalted silliness about him

in post after post and false witness about her in even more, I believe, reveal the inability of the most ardent to accept less than perfection in their leader. They must look elsewhere for validation of their choice.

I actually feel that Bernie, with all his limitations, still offers more than this fickle bunch can recognize. They set themselves up for the day when Bernie must inevitably join all the others who have disappointed them under the bus.

[Fumesucker]

10. Yeah but #WhichHillary?

Should we hate the guilty-as-charged centrist Hillary? The sniper dodging brave Hillary? The back-seat-to-no-one progressive Hillary? The better-ideas-will-never-ever-come-to-pass angry Hillary? The we-came-we-saw-he-died exuberant and amused Hillary?

It's all very confusing.

[Surya Gayatri]

15. I'm sure you'll manage to sort it out with those manifestly preternatural mental powers

so frequently displayed on this forum.

[BainsBane]

18. Does it ever get tiring?

repeating bumper sticker slogans?

[Fumesucker]

20. Eh, serious posts don't get many replies

http://www.democraticunderground.com/12511719611

[jpgray]

6. That's one way to see it. The other is as an end-run around the individual contribution limit

The state parties essentially launder the contributions too large to go direct to the candidate, accepting the money and then funneling it back to the DNC. For example, in ME and AK, the money did not stay in those states.

Now it's fair to argue one should hate the game and not the player, but it's a stretch to believe this represents a wholly benevolent impulse to selflessly raise money for down-ticket candidates in the involved states, when in many cases the money goes straight back to the DNC, where it can be freely used for the presidential race, thus effectively flouting the $2,700 individual cap on contributions to a presidential candidate.

[BainsBane]

8. to the DNC?

and then where? How does the DNC spend money on the presidential race? I'm presuming you mean the general election and not the primary.

Do you have any evidence that money goes back to Clinton? In what form? Seriously. If you do I'd like to read about it.

[jpgray]

12. If no Clinton campaign coordination is found, the DNC can spend that all on Hillary ads

In the general, or even in the primary, though to everybody's credit that second one is extremely unlikely to happen.

[BainsBane]

14. But what about your claim the money didn't stay with the state parties?

How do you know that? What is your source?

I fully concede that I don't know everything involved in campaign finance law. I do, however, try to be accurate and have no desire to post false information. I would also like to learn more, so if you have a source I'd appreciate your sharing it.

[jpgray]

17. Washington Post

So far, the state parties have served only as a pass-through for their share of the funds. Campaign finance records show that nearly $2 million in donations to the fund initially routed last year to individual state party accounts was immediately transferred to the DNC.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/democratic-party-fundraising-effort-helps-clinton-find-new-donors-too/2016/02/19/b8535cea-d68f-11e5-b195-2e29a4e13425_story.html

The DNC can certainly use this money to run ads for Clinton, as long as it's not directed by or cooperating with Hillary's campaign. It's not illegal or anything, but not just about spreading money around to Alaska, etc., either.

In 2008 there was a similar arrangement for Obama, but only after a nominee had been chosen. Note as well this was prior to McCutcheon in 2014, which allows for the multi-state $353k individual $600+k with spouse maximum this cycle.

[BainsBane]

19. Thank you.

I need to get some sleep but will read this later. I do appreciate it.

[George II]

36. It's the other way around - the DNC sends money to the states' Democratic Party Committees.

[Kalidurga]

7. I am sure Bernie will appreciate it then.

[BainsBane]

9. But still send out emails

which "accidently" yet repeatedly misplace decimal points.

[Kalidurga]

13. Maybe this is Bernie's eating a kitten on stage moment.

Yep I'm still good.

[JonathanRackham]

11. Meanwhile half the poor Americans ate beans and rice last light.

The other half ate mac and cheese. Made with GMO wheat......

Hillary's people said "let them eat cake."

My PAYPAL just sent another $27 to Bernie.

[reformist2]

16. A $33K ticket price cuts Hillary off from ordinary Americans. She doesn't really talk to us anymore.

Sure she'll talk to some us in ten-second snippets of time on the campaign trail, but she never really sits down with large numbers of us at dinners for long periods of time, like she does with the multi-millionaires at that fundraiser. I say multi-millionaires, because mere millionaires probably can't afford to be plunking $33K for an evening with Hillary. It's a VERY elite group of people she spends her time with now.

[treestar]

41. that is just false

Hillary spends time with "ordinary Americans" and learns about their concerns also - she is smart. This strikes me as reverse snobbery too. And Bernie does not necessarily spend any time with ordinary Americans. If he did, he would know they are not going to riot in the streets or support a revolution.

[DemocracyDirect]

21. It's an unprecedented conflict of interest...

... and is in my opinion corruption.

Hillary Clinton and the Democratic National Committee have an unusual and apparently unprecedented agreement in which an entity she controls has paid nearly $20 million to the political panel, even as its leadership plays a supposedly impartial role in fostering competition between the former secretary of state and her rivals for the party’s 2016 presidential nomination.

http://dailycaller.com/2016/01/04/unusual-clinton-payments-to-dnc-create-conflict-of-interest/

http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/hillary-clinton-donors_us_5627a946e4b02f6a900ed79a

[Bohemianwriter]

23. A super PAC you apparently endorse..

So her surrogates can continue their smear machine.

You're pretty naive if you think that super PACs does not work together with the candidate they are supporting.

Exhibit A:

Hillary goes to a fundraiser for super PAC!

And people still think that money in politics doesn't corrupt St. Hillary.

[Tanuki]

26. It is not Super Pac. It is a multi-candidate political action committee.

There is a big difference between a political action committee and Super Pac.

[Warren Stupidity]

24. There are two Democratic Parties.

One is the party run by rich centrists uncomfortable with republican social conservatism, the other is the party of working people. We are going to remove you all from positions of power in our party. Sanders may not win the nomination, but Winter is Coming for the center right corporatist wing of the party. Your time is over. Good luck with your horrible candidate, if she wins she will be a terrible president, and she is very likely the only candidate we could run that can lose to Trump or Cruz.

[treestar]

39. If money were the only factor

then the Republicans would win all the seats and the WH. Good thing we have rich liberals like George Clooney.

You'd hobble us so that the Republicans would be the only ones spending money. Since you believe the voters only respond to that, that's rooting for Republicans to win.

[Cha]

25. Thank you for the reality section of the forum, BB. Yes, Hlllary knows how important it is to

elected Dems in Congress.

[MineralMan]

27. I think some people have posted that disinformation as a tactic.

They know that people won't go look things up or check the accuracy. Yes, two seats at that fundraiser could require that sizable donation. What goes unmentioned is how much it actually costs just to attend the fundraiser and how many of those six-figure seats are actually available. Also going unmentioned is where that money goes.

Thanks for posting the actual information.

[George II]

28. What Sanders never mentions when he claims the "average" contribution is $27 is that....

....many contributors have given dozens of small contributions, adding up to much more than a mere $27 PER contributor.

In fact, his Treasurer lost track of how many contributions some individuals have given, resulting in many exceeding the $2700 maximum.

If this is they way he handles numbers, I shudder to think of his budget proposals in the slight chance that he's elected.

PS - fundraisers like that one have raised more than $18 million dollars for ALL Democratic candidates in November. Sanders has raised $ZERO for other Democratic candidates.

[amborin]

30. complete falsehood; Bernie's donation system keeps constant, accurate track each donor's totals to d

[George II]

31. Then why have hundreds of contributors exceeded the $2700 or $5400 limits?

His Treasurer has received two very long lists (totalling 250 pages) of impermissible contributions, many of them because the contributor exceeded the limits.

There were also single contributions (not aggregates) that exceeded the limits, which should have been flagged immediately.

The lists are out there, very curious numbers in them.

[NurseJackie]

34. He's raised ZERO for other Democratic candidates? That's very short-sighted.

It doesn't seem to be a very effective way to start a "revolution".

[amborin]

29. incredible to try to defend this! average Joe Public could never afford to attend one of these;

[Tanuki]

32. Average Joe Public could not afford one of Bernie's high-cost fundraisers, either.

He's had quite a few of them, but his fans here are strangely silent. Where is the condemnation? Both candidates have free events and high ticket fundraisers. Here is an example of one of Bernie's, directly from his website. For a mere $10 thousand, Joe Public could have been listed as a co-host!

https://secure.berniesanders.com/page/contribute/los-angeles-fundraising-reception

[treestar]

38. Average people do things differently

But they can participate and each has one vote, George Clooney has no more than one vote.

And these are rich people who are Democrats!

[lumberjack_jeff]

35. Democrats across the country?.. or just superdelegates that promise to support Hillary? n/t

[treestar]

37. It's always more complex that the stark black and white gotchas

presented in order to attempt to excite horror and suspicion and to declare Hillary corrupt.

[lumberjack_jeff]

40. Chah! The price of admission is only $33,400!!! Pay up Maddie, I'm serious! n/t

[hellofromreddit]

43. $2700.00 = 225 x $12.00 | $27 = 1.8 x $15.00

Math.

[beaglelover]

44. You DO realize Hillary is raising money for ALL Democrats who are running, not just herself, right.

Unlike the old Socialist who only cares about himself because he's not really a democrat. Fuck you Bernie!