Obama's supporters get around money limit

[Tesha]

Source: SF Chronicle

Obama's supporters get around money limit

Lance Williams, Chronicle Staff Writer

California supporters of Democratic presidential candidate
Sen. Barack Obama are using a controversial political committee
to rake in donations in excess of what is allowed under tough
federal campaign finance laws.

Exploiting a legal loophole, the Obama supporters have set up
a so-called 527 group - an unregulated committee of the type
deployed by Republican Swift Boat Veterans in the 2004
presidential campaign - as a centerpiece of political
fundraising for the California Democratic primary in February.

So far, wealthy donors have written checks in the amounts of
$90,000 and $50,000 to "Vote Hope 2008," the Obama supporters'
527 group, federal records show. The group is led by San
Francisco lawyer Steve Phillips, son-in-law of wealthy
financier and Democratic political donor Herbert Sandler.

Named for the section of the U.S. tax code that regulates
these groups - and independent of the input or control of
political candidates - 527 groups aren't subject to the
Federal Election Commission's legal limit on contributions
of $2,300 per donor per election.

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Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/08/MN9JREV751.DTL

[MADem]

1. Bwahahahahaha!!! I "hope" they ALL do it!!! Talk about taking a GOP dirty trick and FLIPPING it!!!

If the rightwingnuts say a word, all ya gotta do is point out that the pot is calling out the kettle!!!

[Diane R]

2. Yep. The media is going to bring down anyone who might beat Hillary.

[Kagemusha]

3. Uh, what is so hard to understand? These are not donations to Obama.

They are donations to supporters of Obama.

What is so hard to understand?

[David__77]

4. I don't really like the term "loophole."

It's either legal or it's illegal. If it's legal, it legal - period! It's not the job of a candidate's political supporters to adhere to some ethereal notion of "legislative intent," when the law itself does not provide for the implementation of such "intent."

[killbotfactory]

5. Obama blasts shadow fundraising group

Obama was asked if the independent organization raising money on his part suggested a hypocrisy and an effort to skirt campaign finance laws.

"It would be hypocrisy if I had anything to do with them, since I just heard of them,'' he said. "This is not something that I authorized or had any part of.''

The senator was firm in his view that supporters should not participate in such organizations.

"My recommendation to people who are interested in supporting me is to support me through our campaign -- the way over 250,000 donors have supported us, the way hundreds of thousands of volunteers have supported us.

"Get involved in the campaign that we've set up, that is above board, that is transparent, that is legal,'' he said. "And I think if people channel their energies in that way, we'll all be better off.''

Asked if he was publicly suggesting that Democrats no longer contribute to such independent organizations, Obama said: "That's what I just did ... We do not think people should be donating to 527s. We would rather have them in involved in our campaign.''

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/08/BAGCIRF4M85.DTL&tsp=1