The Star Online: World Updates
The Star Online: World Updates |
- Obama recruits more big cash donors for re-election
- Leader of Cuba's 'Ladies in White' dies at 63
- Showdown averted in New York's Wall Street protests
| Obama recruits more big cash donors for re-election Posted: 14 Oct 2011 08:54 PM PDT WASHINGTON/CHICAGO (Reuters) - The number of donors who raise big money for President Barack Obama jumped in the last three months as he builds a war chest for what will likely be the costliest presidential election ever.
At least forty-one people have raised at least half a million dollars for the president, compared to 27 in Obama's first report, according to an analysis of campaign data released on Friday. The big donors, known as "bundlers," are typically well-connected people who pledge to gather tens of thousands of dollars for a candidate Former Goldman Sachs executive Jon Corzine and Dreamworks Animation chief executive executive Jeffrey Katzenberg are on Obama's elite list and raised $500,000 or more. The president's campaign finance report shows he can still pull in major cash despite a stagnant economy, dipping approval ratings and grumblings among some liberal supporters that he has not done enough for their cause. While still keeping ties to his famed small donor operation, Obama is relying heavily on major donors early on to finance a campaign that is likely to break records in spending, according to Anthony Corrado, a campaign finance expert at Colby College. "The emphasis has been on doing larger dollar fundraising events particularly asking for $2,500," Corrado said. "Events like this help him to raise substantial amounts of money for the campaign allowing him to exceed his pace for 2007." Obama and the Democratic National Committee have raised more than $150 million so far for his bid for a second term, far outstripping Obama's Republican rivals. DOLLARS = VOTES? But fundraising prowess doesn't guarantee victory for the incumbent, who is fighting for re-election amid a economic stagnation and high unemployment. Opinion polls show that Obama will have a tough time winning re-election next year. A Gallup poll released on Friday showed that U.S. registered voters, by 46 percent to 38 percent, are more likely to vote for an unnamed Republican presidential candidate than for Obama in 2012. Bundlers raised about a third of Obama's warchest so far. Earlier on Friday, Republican Mitt Romney posted $14 million for the quarter, second to fellow Republican Texas Governor Rick Perry's $17 million. Obama's comparable fundraising figure for the three months was $43 million. Obama voluntarily releases a list of bundlers. No other major candidate has done so. The president regularly brings in more than $1 million in a single evening of fundraising, as supporters donate the legal maximum of $35,800 to his campaign and the Democratic party for the chance to have dinner and take a picture with the president. UBS executive Robert Wolf and hedge fund executive Orin Kramer are also big Obama fundraisers. At least 40 percent of all the money raised by the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee last quarter came from those giving in increments of $200 or less. The Obama campaign has been touting its connections to mainstream Americans who send smaller checks, calling itself a grassroots effort. "They are still doing well with small donors," said Darrell West, director of governance studies at the Brookings Institution, a thank tank. The campaign said that in the third quarter about 600,000 people donated to the campaign. Much has been made of dipping support among Wall Street for Obama. Some financial executives, including hedge fund managers, have complained about Obama's tax and financial regulation policies and his comments about the wealthy, at times calling them "fat cats." In the second quarter, more Wall Street money did flow to Romney, who has deep ties there. Still, Obama boosted the number of bundlers with Wall Street ties in that period. (Additional reporting by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Todd Eastham) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| Leader of Cuba's 'Ladies in White' dies at 63 Posted: 14 Oct 2011 08:54 PM PDT HAVANA (Reuters) - Laura Pollan, one of the founders of the dissident group Ladies in White, has died in a Havana hospital at the age of 63, fellow dissidents on Friday. Family members could not be reached, but Pollan's longtime co-leader of the women's group confirmed her death, telling Reuters from outside the hospital that "Laura has just died."
Pollan was reported to have a pulmonary illness and been on a respirator since Oct. 7. There were reports earlier on Friday that her condition had worsened. The former teacher became one of Cuba's leading dissidents after her husband and 74 other government opponents were jailed in a March 2003 government crackdown. The Ladies in White, dressed in white and carrying flowers, began marching in silence every Sunday in Havana soon after the arrests to demand the release of their family members in protests the Cuban government initially tried to stop, but eventually allowed to continue. All of the 75 dissidents imprisoned in the crackdown have been released, most of them following a deal between the government and the Catholic Church last year. (Reporting by Rosa Tania Valdes; writing by Jeff Franks; editing by Todd Eastham) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| Showdown averted in New York's Wall Street protests Posted: 14 Oct 2011 08:54 PM PDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - Anti-Wall Street protesters claimed victory on Friday when plans to clean the park they occupy were postponed, while police forces in financial capitals around the world braced for a weekend of rallies.
A planned cleanup of the Lower Manhattan park that has been home to the Occupy Wall Street movement since Sept. 17 was delayed just hours before it was due to begin by Brookfield Office Properties, which manages the publicly accessible park. The move averted a possible showdown between police and protesters who viewed the cleanup as a ploy to evict them. Protesters loudly cheered the decision, and several hundred set off marching toward the city's financial district. Police arrested 14 people, but there were no widespread disruptions. "This development has emboldened the movement and sent a clear message that the power of the people has prevailed against Wall Street," Occupy Wall Street said in a statement, estimating more than 3,000 people had gathered in Zucotti park. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, in his weekly radio address on Friday, said his office was not involved in the decision to postpone the cleanup. "My understanding is that Brookfield got lots of calls from many elected officials threatening them and saying, 'If you don't stop this, we'll make your life much more difficult,'" said Bloomberg, who added that he did not know which officials had called the company. Protesters are upset that the billions of dollars in U.S. bank bailouts doled out during the recession allowed banks to resume earning huge profits while average Americans got scant relief from high unemployment and job insecurity. They also argue that the richest 1 percent of Americans do not pay their fair share in taxes. Many protesters feared the cleaning would be an attempt to shut down the movement that has sparked solidarity protests in other cities. RATS AND ROACHES? Bloomberg said Brookfield wanted a few more days to try to reach an agreement with the protesters, who have undertaken their own efforts to clear debris from the park. Meanwhile, authorities in New York, London, Frankfurt, Athens and elsewhere braced for demonstrations on Saturday. Rallies were planned in some 71 countries, according to Occupy Together and United for Global Change. Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney, in an interview with Canadian national broadcaster CBC, expressed sympathy with the protesters. "I understand the frustration of many people, particularly in the United States. You've had an increase of inequality," said Carney, a former Goldman Sachs banker, noting "a big increase in the ratio of CEO earnings to workers on the shop floor." In New York, organizers planned demonstrations in Times Square and Washington Square Park. Protesters will also march to JPMorgan Chase bank branch to withdraw their money. "Its going to be big, its going to be global," said David Sierra, 23, a carpenter from Queens. A group of Occupy San Diego protesters scuffled with police on Friday as authorities sought to clear camping equipment, tables, signs and other gear from a downtown public square in the southern California city. Police used pepper-spray on about a half-dozen protesters. In Denver, at least 21 people were arrested on Friday and tents were removed from the Occupy Denver protest. Protesters in New York had spent much of the previous night tidying the park themselves, in hopes of keeping out Brookfield, a major real estate company that counts Bloomberg's girlfriend Diana Taylor among its board members. "We clean up after ourselves. It's not like there's rats and roaches running around the park," said Bailey Bryant, 28, an employee at a Manhattan bank who visits the camp after work and on weekends. (Additional reporting by Ellen Wulfhorst, Ray Sanchez and Bill Berkrot; Editing by Will Dunham and Paul Simao) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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