Obama Received $20 Million From Healthcare Industry in 2008 Campaign

[tekisui]

Source: The Raw Story

While some sunlight has been shed on the hefty sums shoveled into congressional campaign coffers in an effort to influence the Democrats' massive healthcare bill, little attention has been focused on the far larger sums received by President Barack Obama while he was a candidate in 2008.

A new figure, based on an exclusive analysis created for Raw Story by the Center for Responsive Politics, shows that President Obama received a staggering $20,175,303 from the healthcare industry during the 2008 election cycle, nearly three times the amount of his presidential rival John McCain. McCain took in $7,758,289, the Center found.

The new figure, obtained by Raw Story through an independent custom research request performed by the Center for Responsive Politics -- a nonprofit, nonpartisan group that tracks money in politics -- is the most comprehensive breakdown yet available of healthcare industry contributions to Obama during the 2008 election cycle.

Currently, the Center's website shows that Obama received $19,462,986 from the health sector, which includes health professionals ($11.7m), health services/HMOs ($1.4m), hospitals/nursing homes ($3.3m) and pharmaceuticals/health products ($2.1m). Miscellaneous health donations (from which Obama received $860,411) are also factored into the current total health sector numbers but are not accessible on the site.

more: http://rawstory.com/2010/01/obama-received-20-million-healthcare-industry-money-2008/

[emilyg]

1. kick

[Starbucks Anarchist]

2. They're including health professionals under the umbrella?

Seems a bit disingenuous.

[DevonRex]

8. I'd go further and say it's intentionally deceptive. Par for the course around here. nt

[inthebrain]

13. Not it's not. You didn't read the whole thing. Insurance is buried in finance

"Health insurance industry contributions, however, are not included within the Center's current health sector totals. Rather, contributions from the health insurance industry are contained within the site's finance and insurance sector. Seeking a more complete total, the Center culled health and accident insurance donations from this sector (for which Obama received $712,317) and combined them with his existing health sector total ($19,462,986) to arrive at his healthcare industry total ($20,175,303)."

[Clio the Leo]

3. And he raised $500 million from online donations ....

.... $600 million total .... puts things into perspective. ;)

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2008/11/20/obama_raised_half_a_billion_on.html

[kirby]

5. Yeah, so who should have the most sway? n/t

[treestar]

24. Er, shouldn't those decisions be made as to what is best for the voters

regardless of how much money they put into it?

[kirby]

28. Yeah but...

That is not how it works. Typically it is the largest donors get what they want. In this case, Obama raised huge amounts from small individual donors, but those voices are not being heard.

[freddie mertz]

6. How much from unions and union-members?

Can they get their money back?

[NorthCarolina]

26. But he can count on the Health Care and Pharma $$$ always being there

That's not necessarily the case with online donations. For instance, any future donations I make online will be directed to benefit Liberal/Progressive candidates ONLY.

[tblue]

4. Does "services" include the insurance industry?

Sigh.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

23. Of the $20 million figure....

The article makes it clear that only $700,000 came from the health insurance industry.

[DevonRex]

7. Donations by individual doctors, nurses, aids, pharmacists are included in that number.

Are you saying that's the same as the insurance industry?

[inthebrain]

12. Nurses when they write a check usually don't self identify

and I doubt they make enough to put a dent in that 11 mill. We don't have that much disposable income.

Nurses Aids?

Are you kidding me?

Those guys make pennies.

[DevonRex]

14. What are you talking about? Every time you donate you have to state

who you work for. :eyes:

[inthebrain]

15. No you don't

I have donated to many candidates.

I am also an RN.

I have never disclosed who I work for.

[hileeopnyn8d]

21. Well, you should have,

if you gave over $200 to any one candidate.

Campaign Finance Information
The Federal campaign finance law requires many participants in the election process to submit reports on their financial activity. These reports are then put on the public record. Generally, an individual is not required to report. Political committees, however, must file detailed reports on the money they raise and spend. You, as an individual contributor, will be asked to provide information to the recipient committee for its reports.

Contributor Information
If you contribute more than $200 to a committee, the committee is required to use its best efforts to collect and publicly disclose on a financial report your name, address, occupation and employer, as well as the date and amount of your contribution. Committees sometimes request this information even for smaller contributions, since the $200 reporting threshold applies to your total contributions to one committee during a calendar year. For example, you may make several small contributions to a committee during a year. Once these contributions add up to over $200, the committee must report the contributor information.

Note that if you collect and forward contributions to a committee, you must transmit them within a specified period of time and must also provide the committee with certain information on the contributors. Additionally, you may have reporting obligations. For more details, contact the FEC.

http://www.fec.gov/pages/brochures/citizens.shtml

[DevonRex]

32. Thank you. I knew damned good and well that I had to state my occupation

and employer every time I have donated. And everybody else has to do the same thing.

:rofl: at people who said otherwise. Guess they've never contributed.

[DevonRex]

33. I guess you've never contributed then. Because everybody has to state

their occupation and employer.

:rofl:

[hileeopnyn8d]

17. Everyone is supposed to state their occupation

and their employer when they make a campaign donation.

[inthebrain]

22. "Supposed" to?

Really?

Then explain why I never have. Also why I've never had a check returned because I don't

(What I find even funnier about this thread is that many thing RNS and CNAs have enough money floating around to make a dent in 20 million dollars in campaign donations).

Also, the Insurance lobby has been plunking down 1.5 MILLION dollars a day for "health care reform". That's mainly cause cause they know that an option that forces everyone to buy insurance is going to result in a windfall that equals BILLIONS a year. They are also funding the rights protest against the public option. The progs wind up terrified and will back any option the president offered that right doesn't get a "BIG GOVERNMENT" "REFORM".

In the end the Health Insurance Industry has ass raped everyone.

It'll probably take years before yall realize you've been duped.

YOU'VE BEEN NEOCONNED!!!!

[dana_b]

27. when I donated, they asked my occupation. I'm a RN

so they are probably including a lot of individual donors who also happen to be health care professionals. I'm sure he got a lot of money from health care organizations but this seems misleading to me. For instance I remember a few reports saying that UC was one of his biggest contributors. I am a nurse at UCSF but I'm also an individual donor. A lot of us at UC liked him and what he was saying and therefore made indivdual donations. It's not as if the UC system decided to give a bunch of money to him.

BTW - i was replying to the OP - sorry! I think you and I agree.

[DevonRex]

31. Thank you for stating the facts. I guess they don't mean much to some folks

but they do to me. And to you. :hi:

[NatBurner]

9. lol

[Number23]

20. LOL!! That man looks like he is barely recovering from a very loooooong night

:rofl:

[phleshdef]

10. The vast majority of that came from doctors, nurses and hospitals.

In other news, who gives a flying fuck.

[DevonRex]

11. Shh. They don't want to hear that. Doesn't jive with the disinformation

posted.

[FrenchieCat]

16. My dad works for Baxter Pharmaceuticals as an hospital Supplies distributor

He sells the bandaids and shit to hospitals.
He is a true blue Democrat.
His donations are included in the Pharma donations.
Should he have just not donated?
Cause they asked him what company he works for and what field it was in
on the online screen everytime he donated throughout the campaign;
whether it was the primaries or the general election.

In otherwords, this really is a post attempting to indict what is not what it seems.
Shame that DUers would do this; or perhaps not.

[CBR]

30. Exactly. My Aunt works for GlaxoSmithKline managing

cancer drug research projects and she voted for and donated to President Obama.

[grantcart]

18. he didn't recieve it from "industry" he received it from individuals

How many health care individuals contributed.


Given that health care is 16% of the GNP and Obama received what 600 million you would have to conclude that he was under represented by health care indivuals compared to other sectors.

[tekisui]

19. Good points.

[PolNewf]

25. So he recieved 2.7% of his total from an industry that is 16% of US GDP

Imagine if Obama had not got a cent of that 20 million. He would have had to scrape by with 730 million, having only 10 million left in the bank versus the 30 million he ended the campaign with.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/story?id=6397572&page=1

[CBR]

29. Guess what... Mark McGwire used steroids...

seriously, what major presidential candidate would not have received an enormous amount from this industry? Non-news.

[Avalux]

34. I call bullshit. My donations are lumped under 'healthcare industry" -

so are all the other donations of individuals who work as healthcare professionals and in the healthcare industry.

Intentionally deceptive article.