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Politicans Awash In Money: Need For Reform of Campaign $$ Greater Than Ever	Current rating: 0
by Center for Responsive Politics (No verified email address)	24 Aug 2001 Modified: 28 Aug 2001
Party Fund-Raising Reflects Growing Reliance on Soft Money
WASHINGTON - August 23 - The Democratic and Republican parties are raising larger amounts and higher proportions of soft money than ever before, according to a new study of campaign finance figures by the non-partisan Center for Responsive Politics. Fund-raising figures for the first six months of 2001 show that both parties intensified their efforts to raise soft money - the unlimited, largely unregulated contributions that campaign finance proposals currently pending in Congress threaten to ban or limit. Republican Party committees raised $65.8 million in soft money between January and June, more than double the soft money they raised over the same period in 1999, which marked the start of the presidential election cycle. Democrats raised $38.1 million in soft money in the first half of this year, a 40 percent jump over 1999. The figures show that the trend toward heavier party reliance on soft money has not slowed down since the record-breaking 2000 elections. Soft money accounts for 54 percent of the Democrats\' total so far in 2001 and 46 percent of the money raised by the Republicans. At this point two years ago, the Democrats had collected 49 percent of their funds in soft money; for the Republicans it was 38 percent. Hard money fundraising - which must conform with contribution limits and prohibitions - was also up in 2001, but not by as much. Republicans collected $77.6 million in hard money, up 54 percent from 1999; Democrats raised $31.9 million, an increase of just 14 percent from two years ago. All told, Republicans took in more than twice as much as Democrats between Jan. 1 and June 30 of this year, collecting $143.4 million to the Democrats\' $70.0 million. The GOP total, undoubtedly boosted by having a Republican in the White House, was a 76 percent increase over their take during the first six months of 1999. Democratic fund-raising was also up - but to a lesser degree - by 27 percent over 1999. The totals are based on fund-raising reports filed by the Democratic and Republican National Committees, as well as the parties\' congressional fundraising arms in the House and Senate. The figures come from the Federal Election Commission. A complete look at party fund-raising for the 2002 elections can be found on the Center\'s Web site at http://www.opensecrets.org/parties/index.asp. LAWMAKERS\' CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS ILLUSTRATE THE ADVANTAGES OF INCUMBENCY The Center\'s analysis also shows that beating incumbents - never an easy proposition - is going to be tougher than ever in next year\'s mid-term elections, as House and Senate incumbents have built up huge war chests more than a year before Election Day. The average House incumbent already has nearly $375,000 in the bank. Senate incumbents up for election in 2002 have an average of just over $1.0 million in cash on hand. That total includes the relatively paltry war chest of Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.), who just announced he will not seek reelection. The figures show that Republican members of the House of Representatives out-raised their Democratic colleagues by an average of 18 percent in the first six months of this year. With the 2002 midterm elections fast approaching and control of the House likely up for grabs, Republicans raised an average of nearly $220,000 versus the Democrats\' average of just over $186,000. The figures are based on analysis of fundraising reports filed by members of Congress on July 31. They cover financial activity between Jan. 1 and June 30, 2001. The Center\'s other findings include the following: Who Raised the Most - The House\'s most prolific fund-raiser over the first six months of this year was Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), with $1.7 million. Graham is a candidate for the Senate seat of Strom Thurmond (R), who is retiring at the end of the 107th Congress. On the Senate side, Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) led all others with $2.5 million raised. In 1998 Schumer defeated incumbent Sen. Alfonse D\'Amato (R) in one of the most expensive races ever. Most Cash on Hand - Four of the five House members with the most money in the bank are Democrats: No. 1 Peter Deutsch of Florida ($2.4 million), No. 3 Robert Menendez of New Jersey ($2.2 million), No. 4 Martin Meehan of Massachusetts ($2.1 million), and No. 5 Lloyd Doggett of Texas ($1.8 million). They each have a leg up on any possible opponents in 2002. Interestingly, none of the top five senators in terms of cash on hand are up for election next year: Charles Schumer of New York ($6.7 million), Richard Shelby of Alabama ($6.0 million), Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas ($4.6 million), Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts ($3.8 million), and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania ($3.4 million). Who Spent the Most - The list of top spenders so far this year is rife with freshmen lawmakers who undoubtedly want to position themselves early on as strong contenders for re-election. The top three House spenders are all freshmen who won special elections this year: Randy Forbes (R-Va.), with nearly $1 million; Diane Watson (D-Calif.), with close to $865,000; and Bill Schuster (R-Pa.) at nearly $511,000. Two of the top three spenders in the Senate are freshmen: No. 1 Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), with just over $651,000, and No. 3 Jean Carnahan (D-Mo.) at nearly $555,000. No. 2 Robert Torricelli (D-N.J.), who spent close to $645,000, is up for re-election in 2002 and is battling an investigation into alleged fund-raising improprieties during his 1996 campaign. Top Self-Funders - Several lawmakers upped their fund-raising totals by lending or contributing personal funds to their campaign coffers. Sen. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), who spent more than $60 million of his own money to win his seat last November, led all members of Congress in the first half of this year by reserving $238,000 of his personal fortune for his campaign account. Also topping the six-figure mark were Sens. Peter Fitzgerald (R-Ill.), with nearly $157,000; Deborah Stabenow (D-Mich.), with close to $141,000; and Herb Kohl of (D-Wis.) at $100,000. Rep. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.) led all House members with $150,000 in personal funds. Totals were not included for members who have not yet filed their six-month reports with the FEC. The above figures and others are available on the Center\'s Web site: http://www.opensecrets.org/2002elect/storysofar/
See also: http://www.opensecrets.org

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Correction Issued To Above Article
by Center For Responsive Politics (No verified email address)	Current rating: 0 28 Aug 2001
Because of a typographical error in the data released by the Federal Election Commission, we reported that the Democrats' $31.9 million raised in hard money so far this year was a 14 percent improvement over their performance during the same period in 1999. In fact, Democrats this year exceeded their hard money total for the first half of 1999 by just 6 percent. The error also resulted in our reporting that the Democrats increased their overall fund-raising from January through June of this year by 27 percent over the same period in 1999. The correct figure is 22 percent. Finally, we stated that at this point two years ago, the Democrats had collected 49 percent of their funds in soft money. It was actually 48 percent.