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http://www.newsmax.com/insidecover/Hillary_Spending_Lavishly/2008/02/22/74716.html
Hillary Spending Lavishly
Friday, February 22, 2008
Hillary Clinton has been spending money hand over fist, with less than
satisfying results - and some critics say her campaign has made basic
mistakes in allocating funds.
Clinton entered January with about $19 million available for the primaries,
while her Democratic rival Barack Obama had $13 million. But Obama raised
$35 million in January, compared to Hillary's $13 million, and by the end of
the month Clinton was in the red and forced to lend her campaign $5 million.
Obama still had $19 million on hand.
Following the release of Clinton's latest campaign finance report on
Wednesday, some supporters and donors, as well as political analysts, are
expressing "concerns that Clinton's spending priorities amounted to costly
errors in judgment that have hamstrung her competitiveness against Senator
Obama," the New York Times reports.
Joe Trippi, who was a senior adviser to John Edwards' presidential campaign,
said the Clinton campaign has made two fundamental mistakes in spending.
For one, Clinton's fundraising effort relied on a core group of donors who
early on contributed the maximum of $4,600 for the primary and general
election, which meant Clinton could not go back to them for additional
donations when funds became tight, Trippi explained.
Obama, on the other hand, has relied on small donors who are not yet maxed
out and can continue to give money to his campaign.
Secondly, the Clinton effort spent money lavishly up front, as if the race
was going to be over after a handful of early states had voted, and was ill
prepared for a battle stretching for months, Trippi told the Times.
Clinton's outlays include $3.8 million for fees and expenses paid in January
to the firm that includes Mark Penn, Clinton's chief strategist. The firm
has billed more than $10 million overall, an amount some strategists have
called "stunning," according to the Times.
Howard Wolfson, a senior member of Hillary's advertising team, has received
or is owed a total of more than $730,000, and the ad company owned by Mandy
Grunwald, a Clinton media strategist, has collected $2.3 million in fees and
expenses.
Clinton's campaign paid $800,000 - including $11,000 for pizza - to a South
Carolina company that was supposed to turn out black voters for Hillary. She
lost the primary to Obama by a wide margin.
Also in January, the Clinton campaign paid out more than $25,000 for rooms
at the posh Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas, and another $5,000 at the Four
Seasons.
"The problem is she ran a campaign like they were staying at the
Ritz-Carlton," said Trippi.
"Everything was the best. The most expensive draping at events. The biggest
charter. It was like, 'We're going to show you how presidential we are by
making our events look presidential.'"
Hillary Spending Lavishly
Friday, February 22, 2008
Hillary Clinton has been spending money hand over fist, with less than
satisfying results - and some critics say her campaign has made basic
mistakes in allocating funds.
Clinton entered January with about $19 million available for the primaries,
while her Democratic rival Barack Obama had $13 million. But Obama raised
$35 million in January, compared to Hillary's $13 million, and by the end of
the month Clinton was in the red and forced to lend her campaign $5 million.
Obama still had $19 million on hand.
Following the release of Clinton's latest campaign finance report on
Wednesday, some supporters and donors, as well as political analysts, are
expressing "concerns that Clinton's spending priorities amounted to costly
errors in judgment that have hamstrung her competitiveness against Senator
Obama," the New York Times reports.
Joe Trippi, who was a senior adviser to John Edwards' presidential campaign,
said the Clinton campaign has made two fundamental mistakes in spending.
For one, Clinton's fundraising effort relied on a core group of donors who
early on contributed the maximum of $4,600 for the primary and general
election, which meant Clinton could not go back to them for additional
donations when funds became tight, Trippi explained.
Obama, on the other hand, has relied on small donors who are not yet maxed
out and can continue to give money to his campaign.
Secondly, the Clinton effort spent money lavishly up front, as if the race
was going to be over after a handful of early states had voted, and was ill
prepared for a battle stretching for months, Trippi told the Times.
Clinton's outlays include $3.8 million for fees and expenses paid in January
to the firm that includes Mark Penn, Clinton's chief strategist. The firm
has billed more than $10 million overall, an amount some strategists have
called "stunning," according to the Times.
Howard Wolfson, a senior member of Hillary's advertising team, has received
or is owed a total of more than $730,000, and the ad company owned by Mandy
Grunwald, a Clinton media strategist, has collected $2.3 million in fees and
expenses.
Clinton's campaign paid $800,000 - including $11,000 for pizza - to a South
Carolina company that was supposed to turn out black voters for Hillary. She
lost the primary to Obama by a wide margin.
Also in January, the Clinton campaign paid out more than $25,000 for rooms
at the posh Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas, and another $5,000 at the Four
Seasons.
"The problem is she ran a campaign like they were staying at the
Ritz-Carlton," said Trippi.
"Everything was the best. The most expensive draping at events. The biggest
charter. It was like, 'We're going to show you how presidential we are by
making our events look presidential.'"