Re: My faith has been re-affirmed

washingtonpost.com
Democrats Losing Race For Funds Under Dean

By Chris Cillizza
Special to The Washington Post
Saturday, November 12, 2005; A01



The Democratic National Committee under Howard Dean is losing the
fundraising race against Republicans by nearly 2 to 1, a slow start that is
stirring concern among strategists who worry that a cash shortage could
hinder the party's competitiveness in next year's midterm elections.

The former Vermont governor and presidential candidate took the chairmanship
of the national party eight months ago, riding the enthusiasm of grass-roots
activists who relished his firebrand rhetorical style. But he faced
widespread misgivings from establishment Democrats, including elected
officials and Washington operatives, who questioned whether Dean was the
right fit in a job that traditionally has centered on fundraising and the
courting of major donors.

Now, the latest financial numbers are prompting new doubts. From January
through September, the Republican National Committee raised $81.5 million,
with $34 million remaining in the bank. The Democratic National Committee,
by contrast, showed $42 million raised and $6.8 million in the bank.

"The degree to which the fundraising has not been competitive is obviously
troublesome," said former congressman Vic Fazio (D-Calif.), who is now a
lobbyist here. He expressed confidence in Tom McMahon, Dean's executive
director at the DNC.

One House Democratic leadership aide, who spoke on the condition of
anonymity to preserve relations with Dean's operation, put it more bluntly:
"There is plenty of time, but the red flashing sirens should be going off
there."

As Democrats are riding high in the wake of Tuesday's elections, running
unexpectedly strong even in traditional Republican states such as Virginia,
the DNC's fundraising problems represent a potential cloud. But those
results could also boost the spirits of partisans in ways that will make it
easier for Dean to even the balance.

As critics see it, Dean has disappointed on two fronts. The DNC has not
replicated the success of Dean's presidential campaign two years ago in
tapping vast numbers of new and smaller contributors over the Internet. And
skeptics say he has not yet established rapport with and won the confidence
of high-dollar donors.

DNC officials acknowledge that elements of their fundraising operation have
started more slowly than expected. But they and other Dean defenders say his
record should be viewed in context.

In the previous election cycle, the DNC had raised $31 million, compared
with the RNC's $80 million, at this point in 2003. But the cash-on-hand
disparity -- the main concern of party strategists -- was less daunting
then, with the RNC sitting on $27 million to nearly $10 million for the DNC.

The explanation most offered by Dean allies for the sluggish start is that
donors are tired of giving after watching Sen. John F. Kerry (Mass.) fail to
deliver the White House. Kerry's fundraising success last year raised
expectations among Democrats that the days of competing at a financial
disadvantage with the GOP were over. For now, they are not.

"We will have the resources to do what we need to do," said Karen Finney, a
DNC spokeswoman. "We are committed to investing in state parties and
rebuilding the grass roots from the bottom up."

Finney noted that the DNC has staff in 38 states and will have organizers in
every state by the year's end. She also noted that it donated $5 million to
the winning gubernatorial campaign of Virginia Lt. Gov. Timothy M. Kaine.

Dean took over as DNC chairman with a background different from that of most
of his predecessors. He succeeded Terence R. McAuliffe, who began as a
fundraiser in his early twenties and had known many major donors for two
decades.

In his presidential campaign, Dean drew cheers from activists for his sharp
criticisms of what he described as an accommodationist party establishment,
too beholden to Washington interests.

Dean's first eight months at the committee have also been marked by the
departure of several members of the fundraising staff, including finance
director -- and longtime Dean loyalist -- Lindsay Lewis, who resigned in
late September and has yet to be replaced.

DNC sources said the post will be filled by the end of the month and point
out that Joseph "Jody" Trapasso, a longtime party fundraiser, has stepped
in.

Several Washington Democrats not favorably inclined toward Dean said the
party was willing to gamble on his "potential for hoof in mouth disease" --
in the words of one lobbyist -- because of the unexpected fundraising
prowess he showed in the 2004 race.

Dean, a virtual unknown nationally when the race began, shocked the
political world with his ability to raise dollars over the Internet -- a
fundraising medium that had not been fully tapped before his campaign. Dean
raised about $20 million online in the primary season -- about 40 percent of
the more than $50 million he raised for his entire campaign. Using
techniques pioneered by Dean, Kerry raised more than $80 million online in
last year's general election campaign.

So far, the DNC's Internet sums pale in comparison, but Finney said a
turnaround is underway. In the past six weeks, the party has raised $845,000
from e-mail and Web donations; slightly more than half came from an e-mail
appeal sent in conjunction with the indictment of former House majority
leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.).

One Democrat with close ties to Dean and the DNC said that expectations were
unfairly high for the governor's ability to raise dollars through the
Internet. "It is a very different process to raise money for a presidential
campaign than it is for a party committee," said the veteran fundraiser, who
talked candidly about DNC finances on the condition of anonymity. "Donors
are a little skeptical that the DNC is a good investment."

As some see it, Dean's larger problem is with the care and feeding of
wealthy contributors, people capable of giving the maximum $26,700 allowed
annually under federal law. Bob Farmer, a past DNC finance chairman, said
that "where the chairman can make an impact is with the big donors and the
big fundraisers."

Dean does not enjoy long relationships with these people and remains
uncomfortable asking for a significant contribution after just meeting a
donor, said party operatives familiar with his style. One high-dollar donor
in the Washington area said the outreach by Dean has been woeful: "The only
explanation I can fathom for the virtual total lack of quality
communications is they are still in the process of figuring things out in
terms of who their major donor list is."

Dean could not be reached for comment last night.

A source close to the DNC agreed that the high-dollar donor program needed
to be "stepped up" and that since September it has been. In the past two
months, Dean has spent at least six days in New York meeting with affluent
givers either one on one or in small-group settings (15 or fewer donors). He
has done similar meetings in Los Angeles and San Francisco, with plans to go
to South Florida.

The sessions will pay dividends in the coming months, said a Dean loyalist:
"These guys have to date for a while before you can ask them for money."

Cillizza is a staff writer for washingtonpost.com.